TMJ Treatment

TMJ (temporomandibular joint) is the hinge joint, located directly in front of the ear. It allows the lower jaw to open and close and also move through its entire range of motion. The upper jaw, by the way, is not moveable TMJ Treatment. I’ll bet that’s something you never thought about. I’m certain that this fact will now remain in your conscious thoughts every moment of every day of your life . There are many things that, over the years, can cause problems with this joint, ranging from trauma due to a fall or a blow to the area to such things as osteoarthritis or a poor bite, possibly caused by non-replacement of lost back teeth TMJ treatment. Even the seemingly innocuous habit of continually clenching your teeth is one of the causes of this rather common and uncomfortable problem.

Symptoms can range from severe headaches and neck stiffness, to actual hearing loss, along with a constant ringing in the ears TMJ treatment. Inability to open more than half to one inch is not Uncommon Moderate to severe pain when eating (especially when over-opening), is also a common symptom TMJ treatment. Loud Popping and/or clicking noises can often be heard not only by you, but by people nearby TMJ treatment. What you can do to relieve the pain depends somewhat on why your jaw is hurting. If you received some blow to the jaw, the problem will probably resolve itself in a week or two TMJ treatment. Some of the ideas below will help ease the pain while you are waiting for the damaged tissue to heal.

A word of caution, if you received a blow and you have limited jaw motion, your teeth don’t come together properly, or your jaw locks in an open position, you may have a fractured jaw and you should go to your dentist or the hospital emergency room.

       For chronic pain, that is pain not related to a specific traumatic event, the treatment is usually just symptomatic, not curing the disease, but treating the symptoms only. Some ideas that work are listed below TMJ treatment.Gentle



external massage over the joint area can help. This is usually the focal point of the pain. It’s right in front of ear. You can feel the joint easily when you open and close. Rub the area with your fingertips, using a gentle, circular motion, making certain not to clench your teeth when doing so. The massage will tend to relax the muscles overlying the joint TMJ treatment.

Heat is excellent. Moist heat is better than dry heat, but if hot, moist cloth is too messy and a hot water bottle isn’t a heating pad will do nicely. Heat will have a soothing effect on the jaw muscles. Find a comfortable chair, kick back and let the heat do its job. The heat is placed directly over the joint location, as was previously described.

Cold is also often a good treatment, especially if the pain is sharp, rather than just a dull ache TMJ treatment. A frozen juice can or a bag of frozen vegetables wrapped in a towel makes a super cold compress. Ten to fifteen minutes on, followed by ten to fifteen minutes off is ideal. This sequence can be repeated a number of times throughout the day. If the ice pack is kept on too long and is not properly towel wrapped, you will come up with a severe case of frostbite, which helps absolutely nothing.

Your intelligent, deep-thinking author, with a degree in dentistry no less, left an ice pack on himself too long. The tissue turns black, sloughs off and takes a very long time to heal. Not a lot of fun and really hideous looking while it’s healing. It happened to me only once; I learn fast TMJ treatment.

Aspirin, as every one knows, is one of the miracle drugs of modern medicine. If there is no allergy or other medical reason not to take aspirin and the aspirin doesn’t upset your stomach, it can be taken every four to six hours daily, as needed. It helps to reduce the inflammation in the joint, as well as minimize the pain involved. If you can’t take aspirin, ibuprofen can also do an admirable job TMJ treatment. Keep on the medication for about ten days to two weeks.

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