COmpulsive Consumerism and the Power of perception
What have we learned from the AGGA lawsuit?
1. Making promises to create facial growth (both anteriorly and transversely) contains risk of tooth loss secondary to excessive forces placed on the dentoalveolar complex
2. There is legal liability assumed by not only the treating provider, but also those associated with the provider through professional relationships including instructors,
dental laboratories, consultants, organizations hosting courses instructing on the technique (joint provider agreements) and the provider community utilizing any dental device (whether properly or improperly)
3. The professional community will divide on the topic of evidence-based practice and specialty status when the perception of wrong-doing is used as a moral decoy to justify the belief systems of their “tribe”
4. People will seek first to blame and shame and later to understand and learn from unpleasant experiences
5. Many people believe that ALF and AGGA devices are the same yet they are dramatically different in both design and application.
6. Any dental device or tool in general can be used appropriately or inappropriately (eg the gun control debate)
7. It is easier to generalize concepts than to understand the differences based on facts. However, as we watch the entire AGGA provider community be judged on the outcome of this heavily publicized case, we need to remember that our ALF community is only as strong as our weakest link. Unity in our community and provider credentialing is more important than ever.
8. Patients who continue to search for metrics of “how many millimeters” of “growth” are operating from a position of compulsive consumerism and often have unrealistic expectations of treatment outcomes. The pressure placed on providers to create unnatural and unrealistic treatment outcomes can be difficult to manage.
19. Challenging situations can often bring out the best and worst of human nature.
ALF Therapy and AGGA: The debate and differences
What have we learned from the AGGA lawsuit?
1. AGGA and ALF Therapy are very different. ALF Therapy is based on the use of light forces created through individualized designs to improve oral neuromyofunction that drive the growth of the craniofacial complex. Even though mechanical forces created through dental devices CAN be used to move teeth, ALF Therapy focuses on the use of BIOmechanical forces.
a. Biomechanics is the study of forces acting on and generated within the body and of the effects of these forces on the tissues, fluids, or materials used for diagnosis, treatment, or research purposes. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK222434/#:~:text=Biomechanics%20is%20the%20study%20of,%2C%20treatment%2C%20or%20research%20purposes.
2. The ALF InterFACE Academy and The Synergy Academy have been created with the goal of protecting the integrity of Dr. Nordstrom’s authentic vision for ALF Therapy in using light forces to create improvements in function followed by form. Other dental and orthodontic devices operate on the opposite mechanism of action with the hope that by improving the “form” through dental expansion that the treatment will result in functional and quality of life improvements.
a. Provider certification will provide additional legal protection for the ALF Therapy providers who undergo the credentialing process. However, if the credentialed provider utilizes techniques or principles that contradict those clearly outlined as part of the credentialing process, the ALF InterFACE Academy (AIA) will not be able to support treatment decisions that result in patient harm through improper appliance design or use.
b. Providers who are not certified through the AIA cannot benefit from the additional legal protection offered through the carefully designed and implemented AIA credentialing process.
c. Providers using the trademarked ALF logo or using the trademarked letters “ALF” as describing their patient treatment principles and devices may be asked to “cease and desist” using the logo and letters “ALF” in their advertising, especially if their methods and appliance designs are not in alignment with the authentic teachings of Dr. Nordstrom
3. The ALF InterFACE and Synergy Academies are actively involved in obtaining legal advice on the most appropriate ways to educate the public on the differences between ALF Therapy and other orthodontic techniques
4. The Synergy Academy has been communicating with other leaders in our professional communities as we continue to navigate the best ways to educate the public on the benefits and risks of any medical or dental procedure while honoring the sanctity of the patient doctor relationship.
5. Ongoing efforts are underway to educate patients and providers on the differences between ALF Therapy and AGGA use.
6. Compulsive consumerism and media sensationalism are challenges that our provider communities will continue to face as human nature continues to focus on the obstacles as compared to the opportunities. We may question the treatment outcomes of other techniques privately within our own community but are encouraged to refrain from judgement publicly as we do not know the entirety of any situation unless we are intimately involved in the procedures in question.
