Allowing the jaw to move open and close with ease is the TMJ or Temporomandibular joint. In this case, it is a small disc of cartilage that connects the temporal bone, the bone that forms the sides of your skull, to the mandible or the jaw. Beneficial is TMJ and this is because it allows the jaw to slide making it possible for you to chew, swallow, and talk.
Considering that you may experience pain in this side of your head, a lot of things can cause it. A misaligned or displaced cartilage disc can be the problem if the TMJ area is the main source of the pain. Common yet misunderstood is this disorder since jaw pain is not the only symptom of TMJ problems.
As long as you learn about TMJ benefits, you will be able to deal with situations related to it. The dentist alone cannot help you with disorders about TMJ because they cover neuromuscular dentistry as well. Should you encounter such a problem, the dentist can act as an instrument to guide you.
Taking the symptoms of TMJ into consideration, these include migraines or severe headaches. Apart from this, there are some who experience ear pain especially during the morning not to mention hear clicking and popping sounds whenever the mandible is moved to chew or simply to talk. Pain can be caused by biting in this case and this is why if only one side of the TMJ is problematic people tend to chew on only one side of the mouth.
Sometimes, the pain may travel down towards the neck and shoulder area. Reasons why proper diagnosis is needed to completely identify and isolate other factors that might contribute to the general feeling of pain are the existence of diverse symptoms. Adequate treatment is necessary in this case for the symptoms can lead to TMJ.
Knowledge about the possible causes of damages to the TMJ can be very beneficial. Several causes in this case are major and minor trauma to the jaw area such as being hit by a blunt object. What can cause the development of TMJ disorders is teeth grinding when asleep.
Here, excessive gum chewing is another cause. Since the overall relationship between the teeth, facial muscles and temporomandibular joint can be altered, TMJ disorders can result from tooth loss. If you had your wisdom tooth removed then you may experience TMJ pain.
Treatments are available for TMJ disorders. When the pain is caused by the misalignment of the teeth then you should get help from your orthopedic. Make use of splint or mouth guards to reduce the nighttime clenching if you experience pain from teeth grinding.
If the pain is brought by migraines and is intolerable at times, the person may simply find relief from taking in paracetamol or nonprescription analgesic pain killers. In order for the jaw to be relaxed, some people consider the nontraditional approach of biofeedback that controls the breathing. Surgery may be necessary if the TMJ problem is in an advanced state because simple remedies will not be able to work anymore.
Especially for a lot of people, because of the possibility of experiencing discomfort brought by problems and associated disorders in this area, information on TMJ can be very beneficial. In this case, proper health and dental care are necessary. Something as simple as the temporomandibular joint can cause you much pain.
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