If you have pain centered in and around your jaw joints and head, this could be related to an issue known as TMJ disorder, or TMD. Unless treated, this could lead to complications, like bruxism (teeth grinding). To stop your pain and restore balance to your smile, your Fort Worth, TX, orthodontist may suggest a custom-made oral appliance.
The Causes of TMJ Disorder
When anything upsets the overall balance of our bite, this means strain on our temporomandibular joints, the joints that connect our head and skull and control the actions needed to eat and speak. As a result, TMJ disorder could develop. Over time, TMD could even cause trouble fully opening and closing your mouth! The causes of the strain could vary, but may include tooth loss, stress, untreated teeth grinding, or injury to the face or jaw. Dental misalignment, such as the presence of crooked, crowded, or overlapping teeth, could also be a factor too.
Painful Symptoms and Complications
How do you know if you should seek treatment? Well, warning signs could include pain in your jaw, face, neck, or shoulders. Headaches and migraines are common too. People often report a popping or clicking sensation in the jaw as well. Without treatment, this could lead to bruxism, or chronic teeth grinding, and risk damaging your smile and worsening the discomfort of your symptoms. We suggest giving our team a call. We will thoroughly examine your smile with advanced digital technology to identify the cause and extent of your discomfort and misalignment. From there, we can discuss possible solutions.
Treatment with Custom Appliance Therapy
If the cause of your TMD is related to dental misalignment, then we may suggest correcting your smile with orthodontics. For minor cases, Invisalign® aligners offer a clear and barely noticeable option, with results possible in as little as a year. For more substantial cases of misalignment, our team could recommend braces. However, with ceramic brackets we significantly reduce the visibility of your braces! Finally, we could also correct the issue with oral appliance therapy. Basically, we take detailed digital impressions to create an oral appliance that fits like a mouthguard. Worn at night, the device repositions the jaw to ease strain and bring relief. If you happen to grind your teeth, the barrier the appliance places between the upper and lower sets of teeth could prevent further damage as well!
DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT TMD?
We want to offer relief and care to protect your smile from major oral health complications. To learn more about improving oral health and correcting tooth alignment, then please call Lake Country Orthodontics in Fort Worth, TX at (817) 236-7846. Our office proudly serves patients who live in Rome, Haslet, and all surrounding communities.
