What is jaw joint disorder?

Jaw joint disorders are a dental health condition that involves your jaw joint. The chewing muscles and structure make it not just a dental condition, but also a medical health condition. It causes facial pain to the patient and is becoming a healthcare condition that is both growing and challenging. It is not easily diagnosed despite patients showing sings and symptoms of jaw joint disorder.

The lower jaw is connected to the skull and is placed on both sides of the head. It is a complex part of the body and is also frequently used. It is a flexible hinge joint, allowing you to move your head, up, down, sideways, giving you the ease to talk, eat and chew. There are muscles and ligaments attached to the jaw joints that control all of these movements.

Jaw Joint Disorders
Signs and Symptoms

Signs and Symptoms

  • Headache
  • Ear pain, dizziness, ringing sound and blocked feeling
  • Jaw pain when chewing
  • Jaw not functioning properly, having difficulty talking, yawning and chewing
  • Jaw joint sound, clicking and popping sounds
  • Bite issues
  • Neck pain
  • Shoulder pain

What causes jaw joint disorder?

There are specific reasons which include trauma and degenerative arthritis that result in this condition; however, it can also be caused by multiple contributing factors which include the following.

  • Unconscious and conscious clenching of jaws when awake and asleep
  • Blow to the face which results in injury or trauma, opening your jaws wide, biting on very hard to chew food
  • Poor habits like chewing gum constantly or using only one side of the mouth to eat
  • Poorly aligned, misaligned or uneven teeth
  • Medical conditions including systemic arthritis
  • Stress, anxiety and depression

In addition, maintain a healthy and balanced diet to ensure proper growth of gums and teeth. Avoid food and beverages containing high amount of sugar. Sugar leads to bacteria accumulating on the gum tissue and supporting tooth structure. Drink plenty of water to produce more saliva and reduce inflammation which can help chemicals from plaque. Visit our clinic for regular dental checkups and our specialist dentists will perform dental examinations to identify early risks of dental infections. Maintain a healthy diet that ensures proper growth and health of the gums and teeth.

Jaw joint disorder can affect the quality of your life significantly.

Treatment

At DentisTree, we offer treatment for jaw joint disorder depending on the extent of the medical condition. We will take a comprehensive look at your medical and dental history, mental wellness screening and other dental exams before giving a complete diagnosis.

Our dental specialists may recommend routine scans or special X-rays to diagnose this condition. The goal of treatment is to decrease pain, restore jaw function and normal day to day activities, and improve the overall quality of life.

We provide treatment which starts off with conservative therapies, but it is not invasive and will not impact the jaw, joints or facial tissue. We believe patients need to be educated on jaw joints disorder and how to self-care (including avoiding clenching and grinding of your teeth). We recommend patients modify behavior and eliminate harmful habits that can lead to this condition. DentisTree also offers psychotherapy on relaxation techniques and stress management.

If your jaw joint disorder is long standing, our specialist dentists can attend to your dental condition.

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