For many, a visit to the dentist evokes a sense of unease, a feeling often amplified for individuals with sensory sensitivities or neurodevelopmental differences. Recognizing this significant gap in accessible dental care, Dr. Jacob Dent has emerged as a passionate advocate and educator, affectionately known as the “special needs warrior.” His work is grounded in lived experience, sparked by a personal journey that began when his son was diagnosed with autism at the age of two.
From Father to Advocate
Like many parents navigating an autism diagnosis, he faced an unfamiliar world of therapies, routines, and challenges. But as both a father and a general dentist, he began to notice a disturbing gap: patients with sensory sensitivities, like his son, were falling through the cracks when it came to oral healthcare.
“People started coming to me with concerns about brushing at home, going to the dentist — and I realized, I was in a position to help,” he explains. “I didn’t have hospital privileges. I didn’t have sedation licenses. All I had was desensitization — so I got really good at it.”
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That ability — to help patients acclimate slowly and non-traumatically to dental care — became the foundation of his practice and his mission.
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Bridging the Gap in Dental Training
According to recent statistics, only nine percent of dentists report receiving some type of training to treat adults with sensory sensitivity, despite 80 percent saying they have at least some interest in receiving this type of training.
“There’s a huge misconception that sedation is the only option. That’s just not true. If you understand neurosensitivities and take the time to adapt your approach, you can change lives,” Dr. Dent shares.
In his work with KultureCity and through the Cincinnati Children’s Sensory Inclusive Certification, Dr. Dent is working toward closing that gap. His goal is to teach dental professionals not just about the clinical side of care, but about the mindset shift required to serve neurodivergent patients.
“Most people don’t even know that you have eight senses. Everybody still thinks you only have five. And so, the education piece is huge,” he adds.
A Sensory Toolkit for Home and Office
Recognizing this, Dr. Dent invented a take-home sensory dental kit for families so they can practice before they even get to his office.
“I can’t see somebody every day in practice, but in a collaborative care approach, if I can get the families, caregivers, teachers, therapists—whoever is working with them every day—to do the same routine using the same instruments and tools and the basics that I’m going to use in a routine exam and cleaning, then by the time they get to me, it’s not a scary event. I use the same analogy: if you have a non-verbal patient that goes to a speech therapist twice a year for 30 minutes, you shouldn’t expect that patient to then talk,” Dr. Dent explains.
The kits are simple but powerful. They help reduce fear by introducing patients to the instruments and routines they’ll encounter at the dentist, while also improving oral hygiene and preventing future complications.
Results have been successful: a joint study at NYU Langone and UT Dental showed a 75 percent success rate in getting adult special needs patients through basic cleanings without sedation.
“This whole initiative is really just creating a new mindset around, it’s not what you’re doing, it’s how you’re doing it. And are you willing to get outside your comfort zone and outside the box in regards to how you’re going to deliver that care? The sensory issues that a lot of people have are just basic issues in any environment,” Dr. Dent notes. “If they could just think in that nature of how that would allow the patient to become more comfortable so they could do their work in the way that they’re comfortable doing it, then everybody wins and everybody has a good experience, especially the parent or caregiver. Nine times out of ten, I have more parents and caregivers who have more anxiety about going to the dentist than the patients themselves.”
Changing Mindsets, One Appointment at a Time
Through his classes, public speaking engagements, and an appearance in the documentary “Sensory Overload”, launched in partnership with Vox Media as part of the Sensory Inclusion Initiative, Dr. Dent spreads a core message: “Teeth are easy; people are hard.”
His practice is built around empathy and patience. On Monday mornings, he reserves sensory-friendly hours — one patient per hour, with focused time for not just treatment, but education and support for families.
“We focus on the whole body itself. Our practice of dentistry is becoming more holistic in the sense that we’re seeing the mouth-body connection, I prioritize more of the mouth, body, and sensory connection because everybody has a unique sensory experience to their environments, including going to the dentist… And if we did a better job of asking pertinent questions about sensory issues that are going to happen at the dental office instead of just medical questions, we would be able to be more prepared and really customize our appointments for each patient,” Dr. Dent shares.
Dr. Dent knows that systemic change requires backing from institutions. Support from the American Dental Association and KulutreCity helps legitimize the movement for sensory-inclusive care — and helps address the challenges of time, money, and education that prevent many dentists from adapting.
He uses the acronym TEMP: Time, Education, Money, and Perspective. Changing how dentists are trained and reimbursed for sensory-inclusive care is critical. “It takes time to do this right,” he says. “But if we don’t get the backing of insurance providers and industry leaders, dentists won’t make the switch.”
Looking Ahead
Dr. Dent’s vision is clear: a world where sensory-inclusive dental care isn’t rare, but standard. A world where no one dreads a visit to the dentist, regardless of their sensory profile. And most importantly, a world where providers treat not just teeth, but the people attached to them.
His aspirations include:
- A sensory-friendly checklist: Providing dentists with practical and simple ways to adapt their existing environments to be less stimulating.
- Dedicated sensory dental facilities: Establishing specialized dental programs or facilities in every state designed specifically for patients with neurosensitivities, special needs, and physical or mental disabilities.
“We’re all divergent in some way,” Dr. Dent concludes. “It’s time we start treating each other that way — not as exceptions, but as the norm.”
