TMJ Splint (night guard)

TMJ – stands for TemporoMandibular Joint – (Your Jaw Joint)

                  Sample Custom-made "Night Splint"

If you, or someone you care about, lives with chronic head or neck pain this is an important page for you to read thoroughly.

 

If you have been thoroughly examined by doctors, and no one seems to be able to help you resolve your symptoms, then you should thoroughly read this page.

 

Here’s some little known information:

Many people suffer from chronic headaches, earaches, face, neck and back pain, or dizziness without ever really knowing the cause of their pain.  Some people with TMJ dysfunction can have terrible sleeping problems and never realize the source of the problem. Patients who try seeking a medical cure often are put through a battery of unsuccessful medications and therapies. Many eventually throw up their hands and wind up on long-term pain medications.

 

A known condition that accounts for a large percentage of these patients is called “TMJ temporomandibular joint) dysfunction”.  It is quite common but poorly diagnosed.

 

Often some of the initial signs of joint disorders are overlooked:  Hearing or feeling clicks or pops in the joint when they open and close. Some have may have even locked open or closed. There can be dental signs that are being ignored: Molars that are flat, teeth that have tiny chips, fillings that fall out frequently.  All the symptoms mentioned above, can be associated with advancing TMJ dysfunction, but they are not the disorder itself.

 

*** Treating the source of the pain is the goal of TMJ treatment. We do that by making our TMJ patients a special kind of splint that they wear on their upper teeth, usually at night while sleeping.

 

Here’s some background information:

The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is your jaw joint which holds your lower jaw in place and slides and rotates when your jaw is moving. It is arguably the most complex joint in your body because you have two TM joints that are tied together by your lower jaw. Neither joint can function smoothly and painlessly if you have any conditions that force them to function out of balance.

 

Your TMJ is surrounded by many muscles that connect your jaw to the skull which allow you to move your jaw forward, side-to-side, and open and close. The way your teeth fit together is called “occlusion”. Your TMJ, jaw muscles, and occlusion must work with exacting, smooth precision during every function. When they do not function together properly, or there is a problem with just one part of the system, a temporomandibular disorder (TMD) can result. This term describes a variety of conditions associated with chronic pain that affect the TMJ and jaw muscles.

 

There are several sources for TMJ dysfunction.

 

1.       When your teeth do not fit together in proper relation to each other and to your joints, your jaw will try to compensate and automatically shift to a new position. This is termed a “malocclusion”. Signs of malocclusion that we look for include clenching and grinding of the teeth, tooth wear, and muscle soreness.

2.      Certain Emotional States can aggravate TMD. When stress is high, many people tend clench and grind their teeth while sleeping or when in deep thought. This leads to overuse of the muscles and subsequent discomfort.

3.      Other conditions that can affect the health of the TMJ include trauma, disease, nutritional deficiencies and infections.

 

TMD Symptoms to Look For:

·         Frequent headaches or neck pain

·         Jaw pain and tired jaw muscles more prevalent in the morning or late afternoon 

·         Clicking noise when you open or close your mouth

·         Difficultly opening and closing

·         Jaw pain when chewing or yawning; jaws have locked up 

·         Earaches or ringing in the ears without infection or other cause

·         Clenching and grinding (increases with stress)

·         Sensitive, broken, or worn teeth when no dental problems exist

·         Teeth do not fit together

 

TREATMENT OPTIONS:

Depending on the symptoms and situation, various treatments may be recommended. First, we may recommend that you wear an “occlusal splint” to help diagnose and treat your TMJ disorder. A splint is acrylic appliance that fits over your top teeth that insures that  your joint is resting and  moving in its proper position. It corrects any imbalances so well that most people gladly wear it every night without fail and report an improvement in their symptoms by 80% - 100%.

A certain type of   splint essentially positions your jaw in a way that relieves pressure, relaxes pinched or stretched joint tissues and relaxes  your muscles. Splints that are this successful must be custom made for each patient. 

 There are minute adjustments that can make enormous differences in relief and since we have been making the “Dawson Design Splint” since 1997, we are terrifically successful at getting patients great outcomes.

DON'T USE STORE-BOUGHT SPLINTS OR SPORTS GUARDS!..

 JUST SAY "NO" TO THE TEMPTATION of a quick fix!

Several times a year we see someone who has tried to self-medicate by using a mouthguard from the sporting goods store to help with their clenching. Don't be tempted! It can turn into a REAL mess... The first few weeks you may think you have found a clever, inexpensive solution to your problem, but.. The soft plastic will distort within a month of your wearing it and your teeth will start shifting. This begins a slippery slope of random tooth movement that makes the clenching worse, so the person usually wears the sports guard more, which makes things worse, more teeth move, and so on....  Eventually, you will be driven to the dentist with pain so bad that you can't even put your teeth together any more. We see this all the time and it's complex to recover from there! The store-bought, quick fixes will cause you a lot of grief and money in the end.

 

There are other Treatments for TMJ Disorders:

·         Occlusal equilibration - conservative procedure in which the teeth are reshaped to correct a mild malocclusion. By eliminating certain interferences, a more ideal fit of the teeth can be achieved.

·         Orthodontics - braces may be an option to permanently reposition teeth for a more stable bite.

·         Restorative procedures - crowns or bridges may be necessary to restore teeth that are worn and replace missing teeth for improved occlusion.

 ·         Joint surgery - in severe TMD cases, surgical correction may be required.

 

 

The “Dawson Splint” that we make has been about 95% successful in our hands for the past 14 years.  If you would like us to help you with a consultation, please call. This is one of our team’s favorite therapies to be a part of over the years, because it is always a joy to see how many lives we can change.