Do You Suffer From Any of the Following?

• Grinding or clenching your teeth
• Waking with sore, stiff muscles around your jaws
• Frequent headaches or neck aches.
• Clicking, popping, or grating noises in your jaw joint.
• Difficulty or pain when opening your mouth to eat or yawn
• A history of injury to your neck, head or jaw
• Arthritis in other joints
• Teeth that no longer touch when you bite
• Teeth that touch differently from time to time
• Sensitive, loose, broken or worn teeth

If you answered YES to any of the above points then you could be suffering from a TMJ disorder.

Many people who experience pain and discomfort including chronic headaches, neck, shoulder and back pain will often make an appointment with their GP, a chiropractor or maybe even a massage therapist. Few would make a dental appointment.

Your body is a complex system of nerves, muscles and joints that are all interconnected. An imbalance in one area can cause strain or discomfort in another.

One of the most flexible and used joints in your body is your jaw joint, also called your temporomandibular joint or TMJ. This is the ball and socket joint just in front of your ears, which connects your jaw to your skull and is what allows you to move your jaw freely so you can talk, chew swallow and laugh.

When your jaw is out of alignment it is referred to as temporomandibular joint dysfunction or TMD, from which a range of health problems can occur such as pain in the joint, headaches, earaches and sometimes neck, shoulder and back pain. This is due to the body placing additional strain on other muscles as it attempts to compensate for the misalignment of the jaw.

TMJ disorders can develop for various reasons. You may subconsciously during times of stress or during sleep clench or grind your teeth, tightening your jaw muscles and stressing your jaw joint. You may have sustained an injury to your jaw joint or muscles in an accident or while playing sport. Whatever the cause, it is possible to have a TMJ dysfunction for some time without realising it. This is because some symptoms, such as headaches, back or even hip pain seem unrelated to your jaw joints and muscles.

With appropriate treatment, most people find relief from the pain and other symptoms of a TMJ disorder. Firstly, we determine the optimal position of your jaw by measuring the head and neck muscles in a relaxed position, and then reposition your jaw to those measurements. The measurements are made using K7, EMG, Sonography and T.E.N.S Technology.

Patients who undergo treatment experience many benefits, from decreased or eliminated pain and discomfort to better overall health and longer-lasting dental restorations.

A thorough dental and medical history and evaluation will help find the cause of your TMJ disorder. Exact diagnosis is always the first step in planning a personalised treatment plan.

Please contact us today for more information about neuromuscular dentistry in Perth:

• (08) 9322 5666
• qv1dental@iinet.net.au
• Enquiry form below