Beyond the Dental Chair: Connecting Oral Health and Bone Health in Canada

“Oral health is part of your overall health.”

This statement from the Canadian Dental Association captures why dentistry belongs at the heart of preventative healthcare.

Dental teams have trusted relationships with their patients. Those relationships create opportunities to educate, recognize concerns and connect people with care that extends beyond their teeth and gums.

What if the dental chair became another doorway to greater bone health awareness?

Dentistry is a critical pillar of prevention

As the founder of the Preventative Health Awareness Movement (PHAM), recognized by Health Canada and approaching its fifth anniversary, I am passionate about connecting healthcare professionals so Canadians can take a more informed, active role in their health.

Dentists, dental surgeons, hygienists and denturists are essential to that vision.

I’ve had the privilege of presenting to Ford Village Dentistry in Oakville, introducing REMS bone-health technology and exploring its potential place in collaborative care.

I’m grateful to their team for welcoming this conversation. For me, that openness reflects a progressive, preventative and integrative approach to dentistry—one that considers the person behind the smile.

Through Wallis for Wellness Beyond Your Scan, I’m bringing my 34 years in healthcare and my commitment to prevention into new collaborations with dental teams.

Together, we have an opportunity to connect oral care with broader bone-health education, appropriate assessment and coordinated follow-up.

Osteoporosis and dental care: an important connection

A patient’s history of osteoporosis, fractures or medications that affect bone can raise important questions for their dental team.

Osteoporosis Canada identifies osteonecrosis of the jaw as a rare complication associated with bisphosphonates and denosumab, sometimes following dental surgery such as extractions.

Medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw deserves attention, careful assessment and communication. It should also be discussed in context: osteoporosis treatment plays an important role in preventing fractures.

Patients should never stop or delay prescribed medication on their own. Osteoporosis Canada specifically warns that missing or delaying denosumab can lead to rapid bone loss and increased risk of spine fractures.

The College of Dental Hygienists of Ontario’s advisory on osteoporosis and osteonecrosis emphasizes medical and medication histories, appropriate precautions and communication with the patient’s healthcare providers.

That is where collaboration becomes practical: asking informed questions and connecting the professionals involved in a patient’s care.

What is REMS and where could it fit?

REMS—Radiofrequency Echographic Multi-Spectrometry is a portable, ultrasound-based bone health analysis technology that assesses skeletal health at the lumbar spine and proximal femur without ionizing radiation.

It provides estimates of bone mineral density and a fragility score, with published research examining REMS measurements in relation to subsequent fragility fractures and the Fragility Score’s predictive performance.

For dental teams, REMS offers an opportunity to connect oral care with a patient’s broader skeletal health. Its portable, radiation-free format can support access to bone-health assessment through referral partnerships or organized visiting clinics.

REMS assesses the hip and spine. Its role in this collaboration is to complement the patient’s wider health picture alongside the dental team’s assessment of the jaw. Results should be interpreted by the appropriate healthcare professional in the context of the patient’s history and other clinical findings. REMS is not a test for predicting implant success or medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw.

A bone health conversation in the dental chair could prompt a patient to discuss a previous fracture, osteoporosis treatment or an unanswered concern with their medical team. Where assessment is appropriate, a coordinated referral pathway can help them take that next step.

The opportunity is practical: connect trusted dental relationships with bone health education, appropriate assessment and follow-up, so patients leave with greater understanding and a clearer path forward.

Celebrating denturists as partners in prevention

October is National Denturist Awareness Month in Canada, and denturists deserve a place in this collaboration. Their work supports everyday essentials: eating comfortably, speaking clearly and smiling with confidence.

A partnership with Wallis for Wellness- Beyond Your Scan could offer denturists an additional pathway to support patients whose medical histories raise bone health concerns. Access to REMS assessment, nurse practitioner review and patient education can help those patients better understand their bone health and connect with appropriate follow-up.

Together, we can extend support beyond the denture appointment and make broader bone health part of the preventative care conversation.

Beyond the scan: helping patients take the next step

Information becomes useful when patients understand what it means and what to do next.

Our Wallis for Wellness Beyond Your Scan experience combines the necessary referral pathway, assessment by a nurse practitioner with education and navigation support, helping patients bring their results and questions to the professionals managing their health.

For dental practices, a collaboration could include:

• Opening bone health conversations when a patient’s history makes them relevant.
• Understanding what REMS reports can and cannot tell us.
• Connecting patients with appropriate medical assessment and follow-up.
• Exploring portable assessment delivered by qualified professionals through the appropriate clinical pathway.

This is the work that excites me: connecting expertise so patients feel informed, heard and supported in becoming the CEO of their Health.

Bring the conversation to your practice

I’m offering a complimentary educational in-service for Canadian dentists, dental surgeons, hygienists, denturists and their teams.

We’ll explore REMS technology, review the evidence and its clinical applications and limitations, provide an on-site demonstration of this innovative bone health analysis technology and discuss whether a referral partnership or visiting-clinic model could complement your practice.

Message me on LinkedIn with “DENTAL” to arrange a conversation or email [email protected]

Let’s make the dental chair another place where prevention moves into action.

Margaret Wallis-Duffy R.M.T.
Founder, Wallis for Wellness | Beyond Your Scan
Founder, Preventative Health Awareness Movement