Dr. Seena Patel currently serves as the Associate Director of Oral Medicine and is an Associate Professor at the Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health at A.T. Still University. She is also an associate at Southwest Orofacial Group in Phoenix, AZ, limiting her practice to orofacial pain, oral medicine, and dental sleep medicine. She is a Diplomate of both the American Board of Orofacial Pain and the American Board of Oral Medicine. Dr. Patel simultaneously earned her dental and master’s in public health degrees from the Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health, and thereafter, completed her residency in both orofacial pain and oral medicine at the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry at the University of Southern California. Her educational and research interests are in myofascial pain, neuropathic pain, oral mucosal diseases, management of obstructive sleep apnea with mandibular advancement devices, and the dental management of patients undergoing head and neck cancer therapy. She is a well-published author in these subjects and has lectured widely at local, national and international conferences. Dr. Patel maintains her membership in the American Academy of Orofacial Pain, and American Academy of Oral Medicine, Arizona Dental Association, American Dental Association, Special Care in Dentistry Association, and American Dental Education Association.

Orofacial pain disorders present with a wide variety of symptoms and affect approximately 1 in 6 patients in a general dental practice. Symptoms can appear benign to the untrained provider, but may be an indication of serious, systemic illness. The orofacial pain provider may be the initial clinician to detect this and, therefore, must be aware of the signs. This course will outline the red flags of orofacial pain disorders. Specifically, it will review the signs and symptoms of systemic diseases that can mimic orofacial pain symptoms.

Lecture Objectives:

Describe the orofacial pain symptoms caused by systemic illnesses
Conduct a comprehensive orofacial pain examination
Form a differential diagnosis for ominous orofacial pain symptoms