TMJ- Joint of the jaw

TMJ- Joint of the jaw

Grinding or clenching of the teeth Abnormal occlusion A former trauma to chin-face There is no single treatment option to correction of problems of TMJ. Harmony of chin-face area could be acquired with various treatment options such as reduction of spasms in chin-face muscles, obtaining a proper closure or relieving excessive burden on the joint.Is disturbance of jaw joint a problem for you? You may not be aware of a jaw joint problem for a long time because you may not guess that headaches and dental erosions may be related to the joint of the jaw. Muscles of chin-face and closure of your teeth affects the function of TMJ. You may gain knowledge about TMJ diseases with your answers to the questions below.Muscles Are you aware that you grind or clench your teeth? Do you feel pain in the muscles of chin-face when you wake up? Do you have frequent head-neck pains? Does your pain increase with grinding? Do you grind your teeth more when you get stressed? Is there sensitivity, erosion in your teeth?Teeth and occlusion Do your teeth touch each other when you close your mouth? Do you have many missing teeth? Do you feel occlusion of the jaws changing from time to time? Do you have trouble during mastication?Joints of the jaw Is there a sound coming from your joints of the jaw when you open your mouth? Do you have trouble in opening-closing your mouth, eating or yawning? Do you sometimes feel that your jaw is locked? Did you have any trauma to head-neck area? Is there a disease involving your other joints such as arthritis? Do you have trouble in opening your mouth?IF YOU ANSWERED ‘YES’ TO MANY QUESTIONS ABOVE, YOU MAY HAVE A DISTURBANCE IN YOUR JAW JOINT. IT WILL BE BENEFICIAL TO CONSULT A DENTIST.TREATMENT OPTIONS: RESTING: rest your jaw, relax your muscles and reduce the pressure on your joint in order to make it easier to heal. Get your joint in a relaxed position by separating your teeth and only letting your lips touch each other softly.EATING SOFT FOODS: Eating soft foods will let your jaw to rest. Avoiding chewing gums and eating hard foods such as carrots or eating them by cutting into small pieces will be proper. Mouth should not be opened excessively while eating, yawning or laughing.COLD AND HOT APPLICATION: It reduces the swelling on the jaw joint and its muscles. Both ice and wet-hot application will relax the muscles and reduce the pain. Use these techniques in direction with doctor’s directives.EXERCISES OF THE JAW: Exercises increase elasticity and strength of the muscles and they may help in returning the jaw movements back to normal. It is done when there is no acute pain.DRUG USE: drugs may help when you have increased pain. Also, your doctor will advise painkillers, muscle relaxants or anti-inflammatory drugs.OCCLUSAL SPLINT TREATMENT: Your doctor may advise you to use splints. Splint is an apparatus used for both upper and lower teeth which is made of a clear plastic. There are various splints serving to different purposes. Splints separate teeth from each other, relax possible effects of bruxism and they may reduce the pain. They also change the position of joints and may reduce excessive force on the joint. Duration of splint use will be determined by your doctor.How does a splint work?Your doctor applies splints for diagnosis and treatment. There are various splint types prepared for different purposes. Bruxism splint or night plaque protects your teeth from erosion. It reduces muscle contractions. It helps healing when used for 6-8 hours minimum. Orthopedic stabilization apparatus relaxes muscles by only using at night and keeps the joint in stabile position.How can you get used to your splint?Getting used to a splint may not be easy. You may be concerned with how you will look or talk with splints. In order to speak comfortably with splint, loud reading exercise may be done in the evenings. Your saliva may be excessively flowing in the first week. You may remove the splint without noticing at night. All these problems return to normal when you use it regularly.Use of splint and its careYour splint will be put on within a week when your doctor measured you. Your splint must be replaced as changes occur in your joint. You have to use it minimum 6-8 hours in the beginning. You should clean it with soap and brushes regularly. If your splint breaks or fractures, consult your doctor immediately.