TMJ disorders develop for many reasons. You might clench or grind your teeth, potentially leading to sore jaw muscles and stressing your TM joint. You may have a damaged jaw joint due to injury or disease. Injuries and arthritis can damage the joint directly or stretch or tear the muscle ligaments. As a result, the disk, which is made of cartilage and functions as the “cushion” of the jaw joint, can slip out of position. Whatever the cause, the results may include a misaligned bite, pain, clicking, grating noise, or limited mouth opening.

Do You Have A TMJ Disorder?

Are you aware of grinding or clenching your teeth?
Do you wake up with sore, stiff muscles around your jaws?
Do you have frequent headaches or neck aches?
Does the pain get worse when you clench your teeth?
Does stress make your clenching and pain worse?
Does your jaw click, pop, grate, catch, or lock when you open your mouth?
Is it difficult or painful to open your mouth, eat, or yawn?
Have you ever injured your neck, head, or jaws?
Have you had problems (such as arthritis) with other joints?
Do you have teeth that no longer touch when you bite?
Do your teeth meet differently from time to time?
Is it hard to use your front teeth to bite or tear food?
Are your teeth sensitive, loose, broken or worn?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you may have a TMJ disorder. Ask us how we can help!

Mouthguards

Mouthguards are an essential piece of equipment in contact sports. Wearing a mouthguard helps prevent against structural damage to your teeth and jaw and also helps prevent injuries such as lacerations to your cheeks, tongue, and lips. Mouthguards have also been shown to help decrease the risk of concussions.

While mouthguards are available in sporting stores, you should visit your dentist for a custom fitted mouthguard to achieve the highest level of comfort and protection. A custom mouthguard is created specifically for the optimal protection of YOUR mouth. It is created with thin plastic that is hardened to protect your teeth. The thinness of the custom mouthguard allows for easy breathing and easy communication (especially important for star quarterbacks calling out the signals).