TMJ Dysfunction..

[Spireite]

Lil Miffy,

My left cheek was numb for years (8-10) and my left jaw has been very clicky for years. My left cheek stopped being numb as I got some neck treatment (prolotherapy) and my neck improved a lot. However, my jaw is still very clicky and muscular so I may have to get that done later, but it isn't top priority for me. I suffer at the dentists just having a check up ie having my mouth open! I refused to have my wisdom teeth out by some overzealous dentist, but then they are quietly minding their own business, so no point that I can see!

[Fiona-Jane]

my TMJ flared up on my right side last night and is properly driving me crazy today. the is a bit different to how it usually is though, and is spread all the way towards my nose, up to my eyebrow (and a little higher) and almost all the way along my lower jaw to my chin. but is far worse just in front of the joint and feels like i've been stabbed with a knife.

my jaw is really tight too although massaging it has made me able to open my mouth by a good inch or 2. chewing hurts like heck.

the muscles have been slowly tightening up over the last few days and i should have paid more attention to them..... oops...

although it's driving me mad it does have good timing- i'm seeing the rhumatologist tomorrow afternoon about my worsening walking and the problems that have crept up on me over the last year. so i can add this to my list and hopefully get some advice about it.

i'm off to stick a hot water bottle on it and sulk!

fi xx

[sheppeyescapee]

My jaw doesn't seem to want to stay in place. It's been very clicky for the last 12 years but getting steadily worse. It hurts up the side of my face and into the left eye. Keep getting tingling sensations down the left side of my face. Even smiling hurts

[nathhead]

Hi, just wanted to comment on the use of bite guards. They don't stop the grinding/clenching just stop the destruction of enamel. You'll still be putting the same amount of pressure on the TM joint and eventually they can lead to an occluded bite from moving the teeth themselves. This is just a guess but I'm pretty sure these processes will happen much faster in people who have hypermobility or EDS so it's very important for us to get it treated with methods proven to work, there's no evidence that splints work over the long term.
The only bruxism (grinding/clenching) treatment method that seems to work is known as the sleep feedback approach which involves wearing a device which either fits in the mouth and sounds an alarm when you bite called the oral sensor (not been able to find these) or there's one with a band that goes round the head and senses when the relevant muscles tense during sleep waking you up, I believe that one's called grind alert but they're not cheap at all. I'm about to ask my gp if he can get me one so will report back if successful. More info - http://www.is.wayne.edu/mnissani/bruxnet/nocures.htm

[Jill]

Has anyone tried wearing dental braces in adulthood? I was told recently that getting the right occlusion and moving the jaw into the correct position could help TMJ a lot. I spend all my childhood in braces, and the occlusion is still far from correct.
HMS books are silent about that.

[Madja]

I've checked the search facility and can't find any other mention of this.
I wear a night splint because I'm a tooth grinder, but over the last few years I've suffered terribly from jaw pain which radiates from my neck, up into my jaw and affects my teeth and behind my nose.
My question is does anyone else suffer from this, and how have you got any relief, particularly from breaking the bruxism?

modnote: topic merged into existing thread: search term 'bruxism'

[anna]

I just wondered if anyone else has ever done this and how to prevent it. Mods - if this is in the wrong place please move but I really would like people's knowledge on this one. I went to bed feeling OK I woke up at 4.30 yesterday morning in searing pain with my jaw locked over a specific capped tooth. Went to dentist who is unsure whether it's an infection or an injury. I'm not diagnosed with TMJ but he immediately commented on my loudly clicking and highly movable jaw. He also commented I had the weirdest bite he's ever seen. Any ideas anyone? Can you get an infection that fast? Would your jaw locking and grinding cause an injury? Yesterday there was no discernible swelling, today I would say there is.

modnote: merged with main TMJ thread

[anna]

I would guess by the lack of answers this really is a bizarre occurrence hee hee!!!

[realrosie]

HELLO, DO NOT BE AFRAID as I have experienced this .When I lived in the Mountains of the Sonoran Desert there were bugs that looked like a small beetle with an orange spot.I am now in Minnesota,right next to canada. Here we have smaller bugs like this but they come with the boxelder trees and they don't bite. The ones in Mexico though BITE! They call them kissing bugs,but I know better they have an anaphalactic reaction on me. I've also a severe case of altitude intolerance,EDS and unhealthy teeth. Perhaps this is something like mine a combination of Rare Disorders and timely venom...If we have hypermobility...My bite fluctuates greatly!I also had a head injury in infancy and was hydrocephalic. Could this help you??Hope so!

[Rosie]

Hi Anna

I have to say that as injuries go, it really isn't that bizarre. It is very common with EDS for injuries to occur without any trauma; also very common that they happen in your sleep. It sounds like your jaw has subluxed or partially dislocated, and being out of place means it has locked.
Yes, this type of injury can cause swelling as there is often some soft tissue damage. Pain is also part of this. The clicking jaw movement and hypermobile jaw are also common symptoms of EDS/HMS.
There are dental issues with EDS, so have a look at other threads on dental problems, teeth and bite, the search tool should be able to find them for you. How is your jaw now? Did it release ok? For me, jaw problems come and go, from loud dclicking and locking, to behaving fine.

Rosie

[sheppeyescapee]

I've had similar things happen with my jaw before. Had a clicky, grinding, locking jaw since about the age of 15.

[anna]

Many thanks for your responses. In reply to your question Rosie, I am now swollen up and I guess if it's an infection the antibiotics will reduce that. I think you are probably right that that there is soft tissue damage because the tissue in the mouth is VERY sore. Having dislocated/partially dislocated other bits of me I somehow wasn't expecting my jaw to do this too!!! Obviously I'm back into my accident prone phase!!

[carolyn]

My jaw locks when I yawn, it's so painful. But I've been very sensitive with my teeth and gums too. Very vunerable to infections

[Green Thistle]

So last night I was just opening my mouth to brush my teeth and something snapped very painfully in my right jaw. (It was very different to just clicking or cracking; it was a definite snap that felt very wrong indeed). Then the pain carried on just below my ear. It hurt consistently for a while, and today it still hurts when I move my jaw in a certain way. And eating also hurts at times.

I've had problems with 'uneven attachment' of my jaws for as long as I can remember. While my left jaw seems to be attached properly (securely?), my right one has always been very loose, and very clicky. (Causes big problems at the dentist when I need to keep my mouth open for any length of time..)

So, does the snapping thing seem familiar to anyone? What could it be? Don't think it can be a dislocation as it doesn't really look/feel different, other than the pain. Any suggestions gratefully received.

[anna]

Personally, I'd get that looked at, just in case, particularly if the pain continues. Good luck