Understanding TMJ Health – The Foundation of Your Smile

Dive deep into the essence of TMJ health and unearth the pivotal role it plays in sculpting the foundation of your smile. This joint, a marvel of biological engineering, connects your jaw to the skull, enabling you to chew, speak and unleash your smile upon the world. But it’s not just a mechanical wonder; it’s the linchpin in your oral health’s architecture, the silent hero behind every laugh, every word and every grin. A robust and healthy TMJ translates to a balanced jaw alignment, seamless muscle function and an oral environment thriving in harmony. Imagine your smile as a masterpiece; your TMJ is the canvas upon which it’s painted. Without it, the brush strokes of your smile can’t find their true expression.

A vibrant TMJ health ensures that when you smile, it’s not just your lips that are moving, but your entire being is radiating joy and confidence. It’s the spring in your step, the sparkle in your eyes, and the warmth in your heart all mirrored in your smile. But when TMJ health is compromised, it’s like a crack in the foundation of a building, threatening the beauty and integrity of the structure above.

Elevating your TMJ health is elevating your smile from ordinary to extraordinary. It’s about transforming the act of smiling from a simple facial expression to a testament to your inner joy and confidence. The journey to a mesmerizing smile starts with acknowledging the monumental importance of TMJ health. It’s not just about avoiding pain; it’s about unlocking the full potential of your smile to light up the room and your life.

The Link Between TMJ Health and Your Smile

Unlock the power of your smile by harnessing the strength and vitality of your TMJ health! The connection between the well-being of your temporomandibular joint and the brilliance of your smile cannot be overstated. A thriving TMJ fuels a smile that’s not just seen but felt, spreading like wildfire, igniting joy and assurance in every room you grace. When your TMJ operates in its prime condition, it gifts your facial muscles the freedom to express pure elation, unburdened by discomfort or strain. This is the smile that doesn’t just flash teeth but broadcasts the unstoppable confidence and happiness within you.

However, let’s not ignore the shadow side; a compromised TMJ can dim the brightest of smiles, turning expressions of joy into gestures of discomfort. Challenges such as stiffness, pain, or the unsettling sounds of clicking, can tether your smile, anchoring it away from its full potential. This is not the fate your smile is destined for! Your TMJ health is the critical factor that can elevate your smile from being simply seen to truly memorable, leaving an indelible mark of positivity and strength on those around you.

The journey towards a mesmerizing smile is laden with the promise of transformation, where TMJ health acts as the cornerstone. It’s a call to action, urging you to prioritize the wellness of your TMJ for the sake of your smile. Let’s not settle for less when more is within our grasp. A healthy TMJ is your passport to a realm where your smile is the beacon of happiness and confidence, unfettered and unchallenged. Charge forward, for every moment without a radiant smile is a moment too long.

Identifying Signs of TMJ Issues – Don’t Ignore the Red Flags!

Ignite your awareness and stand vigilant against the stealthy advance of TMJ issues! It’s time to recognize and confront the early warning signs with unyielding resolve. The battlefield of TMJ health is marked by subtle yet distinct signals: a jaw that protests with pain, the challenge of chewing turning into an ordeal, relentless headaches forging a crown of discomfort, ears ringing with pain, and the unnerving symphony of clicks and pops each time the mouth dares to open or close. These are not mere inconveniences; they are the red flags fluttering, demanding immediate attention.

Do not let these symptoms go unchecked! Ignoring them is akin to turning a blind eye to the enemy within, allowing it to undermine the very foundation of your vibrant smile. It’s a call to arms—a rallying cry to take immediate and decisive action. This moment, this sign, is where your resilience is tested, and your determination is forged. It’s an opportunity to confront and conquer, to seek the expertise of those seasoned in the art of TMJ therapy, and to chart a course toward recovery. Symptoms of TMJ disorder include head and neck pain, jaw popping and clicking, tremors, heavy eye blinking and even vertigo. When the discs in the jaw joints are displaced, it can really wreak havoc with your health!

Be the hero of your own story, recognizing these signs not as harbingers of defeat, but as the catalysts for action, for transformation, for reclaiming the power of your smile. Stand firm in the face of TMJ challenges, for the health of your jaw joint is the anvil upon which the strength of your smile is forged.

Empowering Your TMJ Health – Tips and Strategies

Charge forward into the arena of TMJ health armed with strategies and disciplines that forge the path to an unbreakable smile. This is your moment to shine, cast aside the shadows of discomfort and step into the light of wellness and joy. Elevate your jaw’s vitality with relaxation techniques that soothe and heal. Stand tall, embrace the power of good posture and witness the transformation in your jaw alignment and muscle tension. Nourish your body and your TMJ with a balanced diet, fueling the machinery of your smile with the nutrients it craves.

Beware the silent saboteurs: teeth clenching and grinding are the adversaries of TMJ health, lurking in moments of stress and unrest. Conquer them with mindfulness and protective measures that shield your smile’s foundation from harm. Seek out the wisdom of dental professionals, the seasoned warriors in the battle for TMJ health who will arm you with personalized strategies and innovative treatments to strengthen your jaw’s resilience.

This is your call to arms, a battle cry for the health of your TMJ, for a smile that pierces the gloom with its brilliance. With these strategies as your sword and shield, march boldly into the future, a champion of TMJ health, ready to claim the victory of a happy, no-pain nice smile.

Success Stories – From TMJ Pain to Smile Gains

Witness the triumphant journey of warriors who transformed their TMJ despair into dazzling smiles of victory! These valiant souls, once shackled by the agony and limitations of TMJ issues, dared to defy their fate. With unwavering determination and a relentless pursuit of TMJ health, they emerged victorious, their smiles now beacons of hope and resilience. Each success story is a testament to the indomitable spirit that resides within us all, proving that with the right approach and steadfast commitment, overcoming TMJ pain is not just a dream, but a tangible reality. These champions of TMJ health embraced targeted exercises, leaned into professional wisdom, and dedicated themselves to a regimen that rewrote their stories from tales of pain to epics of triumph. Their smiles, once dimmed by discomfort, now shine brilliantly, reflecting the joy and confidence regained. Let their journeys inspire you to embark on your own path to TMJ wellness, armed with the knowledge that victory is within reach, and your smile, too, can rise from the ashes of TMJ pain to the heights of radiant joy. Seek out the TMJ doctor who understands how the joints work and how to properly diagnose using an MRI and CBCT X-ray.

Your TMJ Health Journey – Starting Strong and Staying the Course

Embark on a quest to revolutionize your smile, spearheading with the vigor and vitality of unparalleled TMJ health. This is not just a venture into the unknown; it’s a deliberate stride into a realm where every grin, every laugh and every word spoken mirrors the zenith of your inner strength and joy. Launching your TMJ health journey is akin to laying the cornerstone of a monument—your smile, destined to stand tall and unyielding against the tempests of life.

With discipline as your guide and determination as your companion, forge ahead, unwavering in your commitment to the sanctity of your TMJ’s wellbeing. This path you tread is illuminated with the promise of liberation from the shackles of discomfort, a beacon for those yearning to reclaim the power of their smile. Embrace the challenge, for it is in the crucible of resolve that victories are forged and legends are born.

Navigating this journey requires more than mere willpower; it demands a strategy—meticulously crafted and ardently executed. Align yourself with the wisdom of professionals, arming yourself with knowledge and techniques that build fortresses around your TMJ health. Let each day be a step forward, each challenge a lesson learned, and each triumph a testament to your relentless pursuit of a smile that defies the odds.

Remember, the essence of this journey lies not in its commencement but in the relentless spirit to persist, transforming fleeting victories into a legacy of TMJ health and a smile that resonates with the echoes of your indomitable will.

The post TMJ Health: The Secret Key to a Vibrant Smile first appeared on Sleep & TMJ Therapy.

Another approach, however, vastly different, is to use medications to calm the pain and at least get some degree of relief almost immediately. In some of these cases, the practitioner would prescribe Cymbalta to alleviate the anxiety often associated with the pain. Cymbalta is a well-known drug used to treat depression and anxiety. Admittedly, many TMD patients are hurting so badly that they become depressed, and anxiety sets in as they worry about how their future is looking. Unfortunately, this drug has a host of side effects that may make it not so worthwhile, but as a temporary measure, it might help for now. Some practitioners use Xanax along with the Cymbalta since it takes time for the Cymbalta to activate the desired response.

In other cases, something like Cymbalta is used in conjunction with injections into the muscles of the head and neck region to calm those muscles that have been irritated from the slipped discs. Injectables like Botox®, cortisone, prolotherapy and stem cell therapy have been documented to reduce muscular tension. This also provides some degree of temporary relief and may even help to ‘reset’ the muscles into a better pattern.

Of course, there are the surgical approach options. The least desired surgical treatment entails breaking the jaws and resetting them into a more ideal position, however, this approach may not work very well. Cutting apart the bones of the skull may be more risky than other modalities. A more conservative approach to dealing with the displaced discs in the jaw sockets entails simply putting the discs back on top of the condyles. A 20-minute surgery called plication. By far, this is more conservative and simpler than the other surgeries.

So as a patient, you have a choice: try to figure out the underlying issues and deal with them accordingly, or mask over the symptoms and hope things settle down. As I tell our people, it is up to you and I am simply here to guide you on the journey.

Read more about TMD.

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Diagnosis of the problem is paramount. A really well-done MRI is critical in determining the path of treatment, and many times getting good imaging is quite difficult. So here is the first ‘delay’ in fixing the problem, getting an appointment for a well done and well-read MRI. It can take several weeks to get that appointment and quite honestly some people just do not want to wait. I can’t blame them either. Let’s get it done now!

The next delay is just getting an appointment at the office to discuss all the issues. This is where we look at the bone from the CBCT X-ray and the soft tissue from the MRI. In most cases, people want their insurance to pay at least something and that in turn creates the next delay. Next on our list is the fact that with TMJ appliances, they are custom-made. This takes time. They are not something sitting on the shelf, ready to put in the mouth. It takes weeks to make them since they are custom made for each person.

Now let’s get to the next big delay. You have to wear the devices for 12-18 months to give the discs a chance to move back into the proper position. That’s right folks, it takes that long, especially if the discs have been displaced for several years. The discs don’t just fall back into place instantly. It will take time and patience. Of course, some are not willing to devote such time (and patience) to their health, so they do not do anything. That is OK as not everyone is experiencing the same level of pain or discomfort. When it gets really bad, the patient will pursue treatment but generally now the problem is harder to fix, costs more, and takes more time. This is like most things in life.

Finally, the biggest time consumer of all – finishing after the discs are back in place. In most cases, orthodontic work is needed to grow the teeth taller to protect and support the TM joints (the jaw joints). Orthodontics can take 1 ½ -3 years, easily! So here you are, having spent all this time on appliances only to realize it’s going to take another couple of years. You are basically dedicating up to 4-5 years of your life toward fixing a TMJ problem. This is why we always tell our patients phase one is appliance therapy and phase two is finishing. Thus, the question has been answered. Now you know why TMJ treatment can take so long!

The post The Case of: “Why Does This Take So Long?” first appeared on Sleep & TMJ Therapy.

The other day I walked into our consultation room to meet a new patient and I could tell right away what was going on. The lady sat there with huge circles under her eyes. Her face appeared sunken and sullen. Her shoulders were slumped forward, and it was obvious she did not sleep well. Her pain was overflowing. As I did the palpation exam, I barely touched the muscles, and she winced every time as a few tears came out. I wanted to cry with her. She was on the edge, and I could tell she had dark thoughts in her head. She finally admitted that if I could not help her, she would not survive much longer. How sad that a person had to suffer so much and so long.

As you all know, dear readers, I ordered the MRI to figure out what is really going on. The MRI is the key to our understanding of her situation. Unfortunately, she had never had an MRI done in the past. To me, this seemed like such an obvious path to take. It was what I learned so long ago. Never assume. Do an MRI to know where your discs are located. This concept was ingrained into me many years ago and I have not wavered from it since. Obviously, the MRI can only show the soft tissue and along with the CBCT X-ray, we can come to a good diagnosis.  (This is another blog about what I am measuring and looking for.)

This lack of imaging and analysis seems to be missing in the world of TMD treatment. (I am making headway teaching and explaining this, but so much more is needed.) An X-ray most certainly will not provide the required views of the discs – the X-ray is good for looking at the hard tissue – the bone. Don’t get me wrong, the bone view is very important, however, it’s equally important to know what the soft tissue – the discs – are doing. So, let me pose it this way: if you went to your orthopedist with knee pain, would an X-ray suffice for a diagnosis? We all know the answer to that one…No Way! You definitely would need an MRI before treating the knee joint, especially if there was any need to consider surgery.

So why is it that most dentists out there who are treating TMD are not doing the MRI? Because of inconsistencies in treatment, this is likely why patients do not get relief with other types of TMD treatment. If all dentists did like all orthopedists do – take a good  MRI to diagnose their patient’s condition, then maybe the patient might not have to go from healthcare provider to healthcare provider, spending money and not knowing what is really going on.  It’s quite a conundrum, isn’t it?

The post The Case of The Missing MRI first appeared on Sleep & TMJ Therapy.

Before each patient comes in for an adjustment or consult, my team and I take the time to study whatever records or X-rays in advance of their appointment each morning, so we are properly prepared. This takes a lot of effort some days. Not only is it important to prepare in advance, but we must also figure out the next steps for our patients; is it time for a new MRI, time for braces, time for crowns, is surgery indicated? This properly prepares me for when I walk into that operatory to see the next patient, I’m armed with the information I need for their personalized treatment.

On days like today, May 12, 2022, our schedule has taken a huge hit due to an uptick in Covid cases in the area. I kind of like these days now and then because I can write my blogs (this is number 3 today!) and review X-rays and MRIs in preparation for the coming days. There are so many weeks that we have no cancellations at all and so I must make time for the MRIs and X-rays on the weekend. That is not much fun, but it’s what I must do to prepare and get ready to explain to the patient what is going on. So, on the rare days like today, I can get caught up and be ready for the patients tomorrow.

Another little tidbit that goes on behind the scenes is that we are constantly trying to ‘get the word out there’ about what we do. I have many times been asked to put an office in Florida or California, but we would need another doctor to cover the main office in order to do that. We are working on that, but it takes time, lots of time. So now, to spread the word, I write these blogs and just recently started doing some video blogs.

As you can see, we keep busy around here. There is always something new and exciting happening. All of this is to help you, our patient, feel better. Thank you for putting your trust in our office. We love doing what we do!

The post The Case of What Happens Behind the Scenes at Sleep and TMJ Therapy first appeared on Sleep & TMJ Therapy.

But now let’s be realistic.  If a potential patient reports that they have ‘TMJ,’ they really are just trying to say that their jaw is a problem, and it might need some help. The way to help such a person is to measure how big they can open their mouth, and then palpate the various muscles that attach to the TM joint. This goes a long way in diagnosing the problem. In many cases, it is necessary to further that diagnosis by ordering an MRI to determine what the articular discs are doing in the jaw joints. The articular discs are the cartilage that covers the top of the jaw bones and protects the joints from going bone on bone, which really can hurt badly.

In addition, a specialty X-ray called a CBCT must be done to further determine if the bones of the skull are out of alignment. So first, the MRI, then the CBCT to figure out what is really going on in the joints. At this point, a discussion must be done about how best to treat the problem(s). Each person has unique symptoms and determining the best appliance is critical. Often, wearing an appliance or an appliance for each arch in the mouth works to ‘decompress’ the joints. This is very effective. The appliance(s) must be worn for a year or more in order to be effective. Then a new MRI and X-ray must be done to see if the discs have moved or are moving back where they should be.

Sometimes,  unfortunately, the disc is either damaged or is not moving back. At this point, it may be necessary to do surgery to help move the discs back into place or remove the damaged disc. Other therapy options to help with the symptom management are prolotherapy, BOTOX®, or even stem cell therapy to help. Surgery is always the last-ditch option because it is more invasive than any other choice. It is, however, very effective and can provide much needed relief to that person who has suffered for many years. The other options, often called the ‘injectables’, help to lubricate the joints so the displaced discs have a chance to move back where they need to be. Sometimes this works quite well, other times not so much because they are not actually fixing the underlying problem.

So, if you do indeed have ‘TMJ’ problems then you most likely have other body pain or symptoms as well. The TM joint can be a problem and you will want to fix it. If so, see the right doctor, analyze the problem, and treat this before it becomes more difficult.

The post “I Have TMJ” What Does That Really Mean? first appeared on Sleep & TMJ Therapy.

The truth of the matter is that if you work with an experienced TMD (Temporomandibular Disorder) specialist, then such an advanced procedure is rarely necessary. The path toward surgery should always try to be avoided, but sometimes it is simply necessary.

When a patient first begins treatment, they must do an MRI to figure out how damaged the discs in the jaw joints really are. This gives the specialist a good baseline to begin with so that a comparison MRI 12-18 months later will help to determine if enough healing has occurred so that surgery is not needed. It’s all relative- if after the 12–18-month appliance therapy period, the patient just feels great, yet the discs are not quite perfect position, then no surgery is indicated. If there is still substantial discomfort, then there would be a discussion about the type of surgery and how to finish the case.

In almost all cases that require surgery, the process is either plication (put the discs back into proper anatomic position) or meniscectomy (remove the remnants of the damaged discs). In either case, the surgeon makes an incision that is only one inch long at the little crease just in front of the ear. He then goes into the joint and will fix the problem either way. Sutures are done internally to keep the discs where they should be, and external sutures are done to seal the area. These two surgeries are considered simple and logical and when done will last a lifetime in almost all cases. The key factor is having a surgeon who has done many cases over the years. It should also be mentioned that TRJ (Total Joint Replacement) is only done when the top of the jawbone (the condyle) is severely eroded beyond any reasonable chance of repair. This is a rather heavy-duty surgery because you are in full braces and the jaws are wired shut for a few months. Eating through a straw is no fun, but there are few other options.

Because TMD treatment is so misunderstood and mismanaged, there are many opinions coming from many practitioners about the proper course of treatment. Some surgeons will ONLY perform TJR while others would do arthrocentesis (flushing the joints) before considering plication or meniscectomy. For these reasons, insurance companies are hesitant to pay for a procedure and call it all ‘experimental’ which it most certainly is not. So please be well informed and understand the options!

The post The Case of the Misunderstood Surgery first appeared on Sleep & TMJ Therapy.

Here we are in the middle of 2022, and I have to admit that every day I am in the office I see incredible things. At this point I am so used to hearing that our patients feel better, headaches are down and they are sleeping. This has become the norm. But every now and then it just does not work that way, admittedly, around 10% of the time I cannot help that person. And sometimes that is just because they need surgery to fix the problem. The more frustrating case is when I meet a new patient and the MRI shows severe degeneration and yet they feel no pain at all!

When there is severe disc displacement and the condyles (top part of the jaws) are eroding, it would only seem logical that there would be pain. Doesn’t that make sense? What I have learned over the years is the discs have been out of place for a very long time and the condyles are eroding due to compression in the sockets.

The body has set in the process of erosion to prevent the condyle from jamming hard into the socket. Think of it this way, most of the new patients I meet really should have had their teeth raised taller when they did braces so that the condyles would not jam up into the joints so hard. Yet, most people never had orthodontic work done in that fashion. The goal was to have their teeth made straighter to look good, a cosmetic case only. And now, years later, the shortness of the teeth has caused the condyles to jam up into the sockets, thus displacing the discs out of the joints. This is what I see almost every day of the week!

The way our body works is that it will always try to protect us from harm. Just like if you get a bacterial infection, the body fights back with chemicals to kill the bacteria. Well, when our body senses the condyles are too high up in the socket and are damaging the discs, sometimes the body will begin to erode away that jammed-up condyle to avoid pain. It’s really quite simple actually- our body is trying to help us. However, this so-called ‘help’ is not what needs to be done. What we really need to do is to make the back teeth taller to open up the joint space and reduce the impact of the condyle on the socket. I hope this makes sense. It seems to work quite well in some patients, but not so much with others. This is why we are human beings, there are many variables at play here. With certain patients, i.e., those with autoimmune disorders, for example, their inflammation levels are already quite high so it is more likely they will hurt due to slipped discs and degenerating condyles. With other patients who have little to no existing inflammation, they are less likely to feel the pain of their situation.

As you can imagine, some days it is difficult to figure out why one patient is hurting and the other just simply does not! Maybe this is what makes us human beings! Please give us a call if you have any concerns about your jaw health!

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