Amsterdam, Netherlands -- (SBWire) -- 02/04/2015 --About one out of every 12 people has a problem with bruxism, grinding or clenching of teeth. Clenching won't cause tooth wear, grinding does. It can lead to tooth damage, jaw ailments and other health issues.

A big part of the problem is that many people don't realize that they grind their teeth or how much they do it. There are treatments for bruxism, such as mouth guards and changes in behavior, like cutting down on smoking, coffee and alcohol after dinner. Since the patient is asleep at night, however, it can be difficult to measure their effectiveness.

Michiel Allessie, a Dutch dentist, has the solution. He is developing a mobile app that records and measures teeth grinding, generates charts and let you share this info with your dentist.

In this way, the intensity of bruxism and the effectiveness of treatment can be tracked and modified.

It's called "Do I Grind" and is still in the developmental stages. "The only option people have now is to record their entire sleep cycle and then listen to the tape," says Allessie. "It's very time-consuming and not always accurate.

The existing "The 'Do I Grind' app (available in appstore) only records when there is sound during your sleep. This makes it possible for patients to try to find out if they grind during their sleep by listening to their recordings and manually score the amount of teeth grinding sounds.

This part can be automated by integrating an algorithm in the app that automatically will detect the amount of teeth grinding sounds.

Allessie needs two machine learning experts to work on the algorithm for 4-6 months and estimates that this will cost around $50,000. In order to generate this funding he has launched an Indiegogo campaign, which can be viewed at www.indiegogo.com/projects/teeth-grinding-app

Donations of any amount are welcome. For a $10 contribution, backers will receive a promotional code from the Appstore, enabling them to download the app for free. For $50, you can get the app and Allessie will analyze two nights of recordings.

"This app will help millions of people," he says. "It will let people know if they are grinding their teeth and to what extent. The app will also measure and monitor the effectiveness of treatment. It has the potential to be a truly ground-breaking health aid."

For additional information, visit www.indiegogo.com/projects/teeth-grinding-app or Allessie's bruxism website, www.bruxlab.com

He can be reached directly at m.j.allessie@bruxlab.com

Contact Name: Dentist M.J. Allessie
Company Name: Bruxlab
Email Address: m.j.allessie@bruxlab.com
Website URL: http://www.bruxlab.com
City: Amsterdam
State: N-Holland
Zip Code: 1151AA
Country: Netherlands
Phone Number: 888-527-0509