An oral device includes an intraoral bolus simulator comprising an exterior surface and having an interior volume Tillable with a fluid. An extraoral user interface extends from the bolus simulator, and can be used to locate or position the intraoral bolus simulator. In various embodiments, the fluid may be a gas or a liquid, or combinations thereof. In other embodiments, an oral device includes an extraoral handle, a shield connected to the handle, a tether extending from the shield, and a bolus simulator connected to the tether.

Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide a device for cooling tissue comprising a tube having an inlet end and an outlet end opposite the inlet end and an interior traversing the length of the tube, the interior being a passageway for cooling fluid to circulate within the interior; wherein the tube is shaped to a contour of biological tissue of a patient. Other embodiments provide a method for cooling tissue comprising applying a tubular contact cooler to a patient's tissue configured to circulate a cooling fluid through the interior of the contact cooler; wherein the cooling fluid's temperature is below 14 Celsius and the contact cooler is shaped to a contour of tissue. Other embodiment provide a recirculating anesthetic cooling system for numbing a patient's intra-oral tissues comprising a contact cooler comprising a contact cooler inlet, a contact cooler outlet, a buccal portion, and a lingual portion, a fluid cooler comprising a fluid cooler outlet connected to the contact cooler inlet and a fluid cooler inlet connected to the contact cooler outlet, and a cooling fluid disposed throughout the contact cooler and the fluid cooler; wherein the cooling fluid is circulated from the contact cooler to the fluid cooler and the fluid cooler reduces the cooling fluid's temperature to a desired temperature.

A device and method is provided for treating a person by providing controlled stimulation of a branch of the trigeminal nerve of the person to induce a dive reflex response in the person. A device for providing this treatment includes a stimulus component controllably operable to stimulate a branch of the trigeminal nerve of a person. The stimulus component can be a Peltier device configured to reduce the temperature of the person's face in proximity to a branch of the trigeminal nerve to induce the dive reflex. A controller controls activation of the stimulus component when it is desirable to induce the dive reflex response in the person. The controller can sense physiological and ambient conditions and can activate and deactivate the stimulus component in response to a condition falling within or outside a threshold value.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a retainer for therapeutic treatment may be provided. The retainer for therapeutic treatment may include: a retainer that may retain a antimicrobial solution against tissue; a number of heating elements connected to the retainer for therapeutic treatment; a number of power supply cables connected to the number of heating elements; a number of antimicrobial solution delivery elements connected to the retainer for therapeutic treatment that may deliver an antimicrobial solution; a number of pieces of tubing having a first end connected to a antimicrobial solution reservoir and a second end connected to a number of antimicrobial solution delivery elements; a number of fiber optic cables having a first end connected to a light source; and a number of light terminations rigidly connected to the retainer for therapeutic treatment and connected to the second end of the fiber optic cable.

A device and method is provided for treating a person by providing controlled stimulation of a branch of the trigeminal nerve of the person to induce a dive reflex response in the person. A device for providing this treatment includes a stimulus component controllably operable to stimulate a branch of the trigeminal nerve of a person. The stimulus component can be a Peltier device configured to reduce the temperature of the person's face in proximity to a branch of the trigeminal nerve to induce the dive reflex. A controller controls activation of the stimulus component when it is desirable to induce the dive reflex response in the person. The controller can sense physiological and ambient conditions and can activate and deactivate the stimulus component in response to a condition falling within or outside a threshold value.

A method of promoting a desired oral microbiota to treat an inflammation condition related to an allergic reaction in a subject in need of such treatment including providing a preformulated edible composition including an amino acid containing ingredient comprising L-arginine, the composition configured to be present as individual molecules of L-arginine within an oral cavity of the subject; removing a biofilm from surfaces within an oral cavity including exposing the biofilm to a biofilm degrading enzyme; wherein during or following removal of the biofilm, the composition is provided contained and at least partially dissolved within an oral cavity of the subject for a period of at least from about 30 seconds to about an hour on a daily basis comprising at least one day to promote an increased concentration of selected oral microbiota, the selected microbiota including Veillonella and Streptococcus.

A method employs a closed system mouthpiece using light and heat generation to activate a gel formulation to increase its volume. The gel formulation is coated into the mouthpiece, which is inserted into the user's mouth. Application of heat above a threshold temperature causes the gel to transform into foam and expand out of the mouthpiece and into the oral cavity. The mouthpiece creates a hermetic seal such that the foam expands out throughout the oral cavity into nooks and crannies that are normally difficult to access. Activation of a light source embedded within the mouthpiece enhances the bacteria killing properties of the foam material. The pH balance of the mouth is restored by the inventive method and apparatus to a neutral level in the range of 6.75 to 7.25.

Example devices and methods of tongue stimulation for communication of information to a user are disclosed herein. In an example, a tongue stimulation device may include a body configured to be placed entirely within a mouth of the user and atop the tongue of the user. An array of electro-tactile elements may be distributed on the body, wherein each of the electro-tactile elements is configured to stimulate an area of the tongue adjacent the electro-tactile element. A wireless receiver coupled to the body may be configured to receive stimulation information wirelessly from outside the mouth of the user. At least one processing unit coupled to the body may be configured to transform the received stimulation information into a stimulation signal for each of the electro-tactile elements, and to provide the stimulation signals to the electro-tactile elements.

The systems and methods in accordance with the principles of the invention can promote correction of an aesthetic or functional defect in a target tissue. A method can include non-invasively applying a cooling agent to a surface of a target tissue; and cooling one or more tissue layers of said target tissue to a predetermined therapeutic temperature, wherein applying the cooling agent is performed such that cryoablation of said one or more layers of the target tissue does not occur. The system can include: a controller and a probe having a distal end configured for non-invasive contact with a surface of a target tissue to cool the target tissue based on treatment parameters.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a retainer for therapeutic treatment may be provided. The retainer for therapeutic treatment may include: a retainer that may retain a antimicrobial solution against tissue; a number of heating elements connected to the retainer for therapeutic treatment; a number of power supply cables connected to the number of heating elements; a number of antimicrobial solution delivery elements connected to the retainer for therapeutic treatment that may deliver an antimicrobial solution; a number of pieces of tubing having a first end connected to a antimicrobial solution reservoir and a second end connected to a number of antimicrobial solution delivery elements; a number of fiber optic cables having a first end connected to a light source; and a number of light terminations rigidly connected to the retainer for therapeutic treatment and connected to the second end of the fiber optic cable.