Dr. Samuel J Higdon, DDS

About Dr. Higdon
Beginning in 1980, Dr. Samuel Higdon established a unique dental practice limited entirely to the management of pain and other problems related to the jaw system. He was the first dentist in the State of Oregon to establish a full-time practice in this special area of care. He remains the only dentist in Oregon with such a practice and has spent two thirds of his 42-year professional career in this limited practice. He has successfully treated many thousands of patients with such problems.
Dr. Higdon is a graduate of The University of Missouri, School of Dentistry in Kansas City, Missouri. He began his dental career in 1964f in the United States Air Force, stationed in Madrid, Spain. From 1967 to 1979, Dr. Higdon maintained a general dental practice in Lake Oswego, Oregon
Dr. Higdon has taken hundreds of hours of continuing dental education related to the function of the jaw and how to make the fit of the bite harmonious with the function of the jaw joints and jaw …muscles. This intensive study led to an interest in the special problems of the jaw joints and muscles.
In 1979, a local Pain Center was developing a medical program for people with chronic headaches. They were aware that many headaches arise out of problems with the jaw and asked Dr. Higdon to work with them in their facility. In 1980, Dr. Higdon sold his general dental practice and began to devote full time to the management of jaw-related pain problems.
Dr. Higdon’s practice is limited to the conservative (non-surgical) management of problems related to the temporomandibular joints and the associated muscles and other structures. Although he prefers to resolve patients problems, whenever possible, by non-surgical means, for patients who may require surgery, Dr. Higdon has a long-standing close working relationship with an excellent surgeon and over a period of more than 20 years, working as a team, they have established a record of successful surgical outcomes that far exceeds what is typically reported for TMJ surgery. He also works closely with the patient’s own general dentist and assumes responsibility to coordinate and integrate care when other health care professionals may need to be involved in the management of the patient’s problem.
Dr. Higdon is the author and illustrator of a patient education guide regarding the anatomy of the temporomandibular joints. This guide has been widely accepted and used by dentists in this country and around the world. The illustrations throughout this web site have also been done by Dr. Higdon. He is frequently asked to teach continuing education classes to other dentists regarding the unique requirements of this area of dental care.
There has historically been a great deal of confusion regarding how “TMJ” pain should be treated. Many patients who have sought help have heard a different story from virtually everyone they have consulted. In many cases this confusion is the result of the limited training and experience that is available to either the medical or dental profession in this quite specialized field of care. Very few in the health care community have been in a position to provide more than limited treatment of patients with pain of the head, face, and jaw. Dr. Higdon’s dental career has been focused on this complex and often misunderstood area of health care. His experience in this field, involving the successful treatment of thousands of patients, is equaled by very few practitioners anywhere in this country or elsewhere. His thorough and comprehensive approach assures a standard of care that is unmatched.