Fixing your jaw

Do you suffer from frequent headaches? Neck or facial pain? Does your jaw pop or crack? Do your ears ring? Are your fingertips numb?

If you answered yes to any of those questions you may suffer from jaw problems like bruxism or a temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder.

Bruxism is when you grind, gnash or clench your teeth, either when you’re awake or asleep. It can cause abraded, chipped, cracked or overly sensitive teeth; facial pain; tense facial and jaw muscles; headaches or even dislocate your jaw.

TMJ disorders are similar in that they cause almost the same symptoms, but the cause is different: dysfunction with the joints on each side of your jaw, which act like a sliding hinge, connecting your jawbone to your skull.

Either way, bruxism or TMJ disorders are serious and painful, and they can have long term affects on a person’s quality of life.

Both problems can be treated by neuromuscular dentistry, which is offered by this Orleans dentist at its practice. Neuromuscular dentistry is simply dental treatment that focuses on jaw misalignment. neuromuscular dentists first determine the optimal position of a patient’s jaw and then use a wide range of treatments to get things realigned and give relief.

Non-invasive treatments of bruxism and TMJ disorders can include gentle jaw stretches, tooth reconstruction or Invisalign or traditional braces. Other non-invasive approaches could include stress or anxiety management or biofeedback – which is a method of monitoring your muscle activity so you can better control it.

Alternatively, a dentist may treat either issue with splints or mouth guards, designed to keep a patient’s teeth separated to avoid damage from clenching or grinding, or install crowns to repair damage to teeth and reshape chewing surfaces.

Of course, there are also medications you can take as well to address these issues. In some cases, your dentist might prescribe muscle relaxants or Botox injections, or medications for stress or anxiety.

Depending on how bad your teeth and jaw have become, you may even need orthodontic treatment or oral surgery.

Not all dental practices are equipped to handle neuromuscular dentistry, as it requires specialized training as well as expertise in a wide range of treatments and procedures. If you’re having problems like these, your best bet is to research dentists in your region that specifically talk about neuromuscular dentistry on their website.

As the practice explains on its site, a neuromuscular dental appointment starts with an evaluation of a patient’s facial muscles, which allows the dentist to identify the optimal occlusion where the muscles are when they’re not in an active state. Once a patient’s jaw is relaxed to its optimal position, the dentist takes measurements – including recording the sounds that come from the jaw.

With that information in hand, dentists are then able to begin the process of repositioning a patient’s jaw, likely through the custom-fitting of a mouthpiece, which, over time, will adjust a patient’s bite and bring it into proper position.