Overview

Headaches or Migraines are one of the most common symptoms of TMJ or TMD problems. Other signs and symptoms include jaw joint pain or noise, limited opening, ear congestion, dizziness, ringing in the ears (tinnitus), clench, grinding, neck/shoulder pain, postural problems, fatigue, sore face muscles and a feeling of locking in the jaw.

Most patients who suffer from TMJ have been dealing with pain and are looking for treatment options. Prescription drugs are commonly used as treatment but serve as more of a band-aid rather than solution to the problem. These are generally prescribed by a physician or neurologist. Pharmaceuticals will not eliminate the pain but instead give patients a coping method to deal with the pain. This may lead to other problems such as addiction, abuse, and kidney and liver complications.

Another common treatment is seeing a chiropractor. Chiropractors can alleviate the pain but due to muscle memory and underlying TMJ, the pain will return and the problem will not be resolved. This leads to multiple visits for an indefinite period of time.

Neuromuscular (NM) dentistry is changing the way we treat migraines/headaches. By treating TMJ with this type of dentistry, dentists who are trained in NM dentistry are able to help patients unlike any other type of treatment. Over 10,000 dentists across the United States are successfully treating TMJ without surgery, thus eliminating the need for prescription drugs or multiple visits to chiropractors or physical therapists.

Treatment

Neuromuscular Dentistry serves to correct the bite and realign the jaw.

First the dentist determines the optimal position of the jaw by measuring the relaxed position of the head and neck muscles, and then repositions the jaw to achieve those exact measurements.

Malocclusion is relatively easy to correct. Treatment options include adjusting the bite, orthotics, orthodontics, or restoring the teeth to their correct positions.