You’re probably familiar with the terms “TMJ” or “TMD.” They’re both commonly used to describe jaw pain or discomfort. Your Carlisle dentist will tell you that the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) can cause pain and discomfort in some people, usually referred to as TMD.
TMD goes beyond just looking at the health of your teeth. It’s about assessing your mouth and bite (or occlusion) to find out how your teeth are coming together when you’re not speaking or when you’re sleeping. It’s hard to believe that your TMJ, the hinged area where your jaw meets your skull, can cause so much pain and discomfort, and it’s not just in your mouth and head.
Recognizing TMD Symptoms
Even if your jaw is slightly misaligned, there can be big consequences. Your muscles and nerves become stressed leading to pain and other symptoms such as:
- Jaw clicking/popping
- Ear, head, neck, shoulder, facial, and back pain
- Jaw soreness
- Ringing in the ears
Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon for TMD to be left undiagnosed in patients young and old because the symptoms are so similar to non-dental illnesses. One of the biggest symptoms of TMD is bruxism or grinding your teeth during sleep. Do you or someone in your family struggle with this and need to find a solution? It might be time to speak with the team at Brookwood Dental Care about a consultation. Bruxism can be damaging to both your TMJ and your teeth, so it’s something we’ll want to address as soon as possible.
To effectively treat TMD, Dr. Michael Sisk and Dr. Brian Robertson use centric relation philosophy. This refers to your jaw positioning and removing the stress to your muscles and the TMJ nerves. We have the advanced training and technology to determine the centric relation on every patient and recommend a treatment option that will get you out of pain fast.
