Temporomandibular Disorder, more commonly called TMD, is a neuromuscular imbalance of your jaw and facial muscles that leads to various pain patterns throughout your head and neck region, including earaches, clogged ears, and headaches. Many people used to refer to this disorder (and still do) as TMJ, which actually stands for Temporomandibular Joint, the name of the main jaw joint that is often at the center of the pain.
TMD can be quite debilitating. It can worsen over time and seriously affect your quality of life. Although stress is a common underlying component of TMD, it’s the repeated aberrant mechanical use of your jaw and its muscles that causes the pain. If you are prone to TMD, habits such as grinding or clenching your teeth in your sleep, clenching during daily activities or while playing sports, and chewing gum can cause or exacerbate symptoms.
An often overlooked component of TMD is an unstable bite relationship of your teeth. This can generate many detrimental forces on your joint and muscles, making you more prone to symptoms.
In many cases patients can wear a simple, removable appliance to counter the forces of grinding or clenching (two different activities requiring the distinction to make the proper device) and help stabilize symptoms. For some patients, correcting the underlying bite relationship can stabilize the muscles and keep them symptom-free for life. This can be done with Invisalign® clear aligners and/or the proper restoration of your teeth with porcelain crowns or onlays to balance your bite.
If you have had this problem in the past, we recommend that you speak to us about developing a plan to prevent recurrences and keep you pain-free in the future. Call the office today.
If you suffer with headaches and jaw tension due to TMJ dysfunction, Botox could reduce your pain and make it easier to move your mouth.
Botox essentially freezes muscles, which decreases tension. As this works on your facial muscles around your mouth and eyes to diminish the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, it also works on the TMJ muscles to loosen them up and facilitate movement.
Benefits of Botox for TMD
With Botox treatment, you may experience less pain and more freedom of movement in your jaw. Your headaches may go away or become very infrequent, and you may find that you grind your teeth less.
