TMJ / Teeth Grinding
What Is Temporomandibular Joint Disorder (TMJ/TMD)?
The TMJs are your jaw joints on both sides of the face. This is the hinge joint that lets you open and closes your mouth. When the jaw joints are damaged because of teeth grinding, trauma, or gum disease, you may experience pain and difficulty chewing and speaking. Left untreated, teeth grinding and clenching (bruxism) may lead to jaw joint problems and frequent headaches.

TMJ Causes
One-quarter of all Americans over 65 have lost all of their natural teeth. After a person loses a few teeth due to a dental issue, it can be tempting to simply let the process continue. Patients often choose to avoid certain foods and save money they don’t want to spend on dentures.

The pain is due to the continued stress of the misaligned jaw trying to find alignment. Considering we use our jaws and the temporomandibular joint almost continually for eating, talking, breathing during exertion, and even yawning, the constant pressure caused by misalignment creates overused muscles and tension. This leads to pain originating in the joint and spreading outward.
Symptoms Of TMJ
Millions of people across the country are affected by TMD, but many of those people don’t know the signs that indicate they are suffering from TMD, nor do they know what causes TMD. Here is a list of the most common signs of TMJ:
- Migraines & headaches
- Head & neck pain
- Popping sounds when opening or closing your mouth
- Clicking sounds when opening or closing your mouth
Experts In The Field
Unfortunately, not many doctors or dentists have trained with TMJ and they can misdiagnose the cause of your TMJ pain. But if you have symptoms of TMJ, the team at Clear Lake Dental can get to the bottom of it.
TMJ disorder can become a frustrating, chronic problem. That is why, when conservative therapies do not provide relief, surgery is the next logical step. Without proper treatment, TMJ disorder can result in chronic jaw pain, joint damage, chronic headaches or migraines, ear pain, disordered sleep, and a generally lower quality of life.
To diagnose and rule out other causes of the pain, your dentist will perform a thorough oral examination. For immediate and long-term relief from pain caused by TMD, your dentist may recommend behavior modification, eating soft foods for a few days to reduce stress on the jaw joints, gentle stretching exercises, anti-inflammatory medications, muscle relaxants, biofeedback, stress management, and other conservative therapies. Surgery is usually performed when all other treatments have failed.
Your dentist may also recommend mouthguards or nightguards. A mouthguard is a plastic oral appliance that’s custom made for your teeth. It fits over the teeth and helps eliminate grinding and reduce pressure on the jaw joint and surrounding structures. A custom nightguard is a mouthguard worn when you sleep.
Clinical studies indicate that arthroscopic surgery for TMJ disorder can be very successful at reducing or eliminating symptoms and improving range of motion. Studies have followed patients as long as 10 years after the TMJ procedure and have demonstrated pain reduction of several points on self-reported scales.
Most TMJ surgery is done arthroscopically, so there are only a couple of small minor incisions to insert the arthroscope and the necessary small surgical tools. Scarring is virtually invisible.
If you have open surgery to better access the TMJ joint, there will be a scar. This surgery is rarely required.

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