Do you wake up with a sore jaw or has your sleep partner complained that you grind your teeth while you are asleep? You may suffer from bruxism, or teeth grinding, a condition that can damage your teeth as well as your jaw joint during nighttime sleep. At Pure Dental Health, we have effective treatments to help minimize jaw pain and the other forms of dental damage that can come from teeth grinding.
The Damage of Overnight Bruxism
When you clench your jaw or grind your teeth, it can cause serious and even permanent damage to your teeth and jaw. The muscles in your jaw have incredible strength, exerting hundreds of pounds of pressure. The clenching action alone puts unnecessary pressure on the jaw joint; this can lead to disorders within your jaw joint (or temporomandibular joint), causing pain, jaw dysfunction and other disruptive symptoms throughout the day. The teeth are also affected, as persistent grinding can wear down the cusps of the teeth and the even cause small fractures in the structure of the teeth due to the extra pressure.
Understanding TMJ & TMD
Your jaw is an important part of your oral and overall health. It has two joints on either side of your skull that allow you to open and close your mouth comfortably. When these temporomandibular joints and surrounding muscles are damaged, it can be painful and cause dysfunction. This disorder is referred to as TMD. The leading cause of this common but disruptive disorder is teeth grinding!
Give Your Jaw a Break During the Night
Your jaw undoubtedly works hard during the day to allow you to speak, laugh, eat and yawn. Just like the rest of your body, your jaw deserves some rest during the night. Since bruxism is a sub-conscious habit that many patients can’t control during sleep, it is important to have a dentist intervene. With the use of a custom dental nightguard, we can protect your teeth from bruxism and give your jaw the rest and recovery it needs while you sleep.
If you are suffering from jaw pain, facial pain, jaw popping/clicking, headaches or limited jaw function, we can help. By addressing nighttime teeth grinding or other underlying causes of stress on the jaw, the symptoms of TMD can disappear. Call Pure Dental Health today to begin your treatment for TMD and/or teeth grinding.
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