TMJ and TMD Treatments For Correcting Jaw Problems

We provides comprehensive TMJ treatments and rehabilitation for those suffering jaw and neck problems caused by TMJ and TMD joint disorders. Our doctors are specialized at successfully treating progressive jaw problems or jaw injuries and will work with you to discover the causes and provide the best treatment option available.

If you’re experiencing constant headaches and neck or jaw pain, pain when you chew, teeth grinding, a misaligned jaw, have a hard time swallowing, or your jaw makes clicking sounds when you bite down, you’re a candidate for a TMJ rehabilitation program. You should make an appointment with our office to speak to a TMJ specialist and arrange to have your jaw examined. If you’re experiencing jaw problems, it’s important to begin the process of getting some relief because TMJ issues do not go away on their own. Without treatment, they only get worse in time.

With many patients, TMD issues manifest themselves with severely worn teeth. It is key to understand that the TMJs, the jaw muscles, and teeth are all interconnected. Any imbalance within this system can have significant consequences. Temporo Mandibular disorders generally lead to sore muscles and worn out teeth.

The damage can be reversed with treatments like splint-therapy but when symptoms improve, it’s worth considering a full mouth rehabilitation treatment for your worn and missing teeth. For example, porcelain restorations will give you a balanced and stable bite, and will help improve your chewing. they will also help support your TMJs similar to how a splint would work.

What is TMJ or TMD?

Examining TMJ x-ray at dental officeTMD stands for temporomandibular disorders, and TMJ stands for temporomandibular joint. TMD can cause people a lot of discomfort around the joint that connects the jaw to the skull. You can also feel pain around the temporal bones on the side of your head. If you have joint pain when you open or close your mouth, you’re likely experiencing the symptoms of TMD.

Fortunately you can find relief of this disorder through a bite therapy treatment plan. At Parkway Dentistry, one of our most important goals is to provide you with a complete and comprehensive examination that involves a thorough evaluation of how your jaw system works and what’s causing you to experience TMJ problems.

Causes of Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction

The jaw (also known as the masticatory system) consists of three main components: TMJs (jaw joints), muscles (that move your jaw), and your teeth. It’s important to ensure that each of these components in your mouth work harmoniously with all the others. If there is a breakdown in any part of this system, it can lead to problems for the other parts and your overall health.

Symptoms of TMJ pain that are common for people who have jaw dysfunction include:

  • sore jaw muscles
  • constant headaches
  • worn, chipped, or loose teeth
  • clicking or popping sound in your jaw joints when you chew
  • teeth grinding
  • lock jaw symptoms
  • jaws feeling tired after chewing
  • neck pain
  • misaligned teeth

These are the most common symptoms but sometimes jaw problems can become severe enough to effect the person’s overall health and well-being, so this is why seeking treatment at an early stage usually provides for the best possible results.

Before & After Mouth Rehabilitation Examples

Here are two before and after examples of a full mouth rehabilitation treatment:

Before after TMJ rehabilitation treatment example

Before after mouth rehabilitation treatment example

Your Initial TMJ Examination

Our TMJ examination involves a detailed look at each part of your jaw system. We first start with examining the joints; we will use an ultrasound device called a Doppler which will identify different areas of potential breakdown in your joints. We will also do range of motion exercises to make sure that your jaw can move freely and without any hindrances.

We also perform various orthopedic tests, including loading the joints to evaluate for any tenderness or tension within them. We then proceed to evaluate the muscles around your jaw to determine whether or not they’re performing optimally as well.

Another aspect of our treatment involves palpating and massaging your jaw muscles to evaluate for any tenderness present. Tenderness within your jaw muscles can indicate a disorder developing such as an imbalanced bite or nighttime teeth grinding.

Watch the video below were Dr. Pio Modi provides an overview of our TMJ treatment options and how they will help

Our final examination involves evaluating your teeth. We determine how they come into contact with each other when you’re biting down and when your jaw moves in different directions. We also evaluate for wear-and-tear, mobility, and migration of teeth (teeth moving away from their original position) which are all signs of jaw dysfunction and call for a specialized treatment plan.

How We Treat TMJ and TMD

If you experience symptoms of instability with your jaw system, there are treatment options we can provide that will help you restore your jaw function back to its optimal health. A part of our treatment includes splint therapy which is where a custom-made splint is used to cover either your upper or lower teeth and creates the ideal contact with the opposing teeth. This promotes more relaxed muscles and joints and relieves a significant amount of jaw pain.

We also provide bite balancing, where we even-out the contact surface of your teeth so the jaw becomes seated in a healthy position when you bite down. We do this only after an evaluation of your bite on a set of mounted models that help us determine if your bite can be balanced with minimal adjustments to your teeth.

Finally, we evaluate your bite force through the use of a state of the art digital recording device called TekScan. TekScan is used to calculate your bite force measurement and helps dentists discover ways of improving your bite proficiency while revealing various occlusal dynamics.

Night guards may also provide relief for some symptoms. Anti inflammatories like Advil or Aleve can help alleviate some of the discomfort and find relief too.

Our TMD treatment procedures are extremely comprehensive and while Dr. Modi does a thorough evaluation of your jaw system, he uses modern equipment and evaluation tools to examine your teeth and facial muscles.

With this type of complete care, you are sure to have the best results possible

Get In Touch With Us

Dr. Modi is a Brantford dentist that specializes in full mouth rehabilitation treatments. For more information about TMJ treatment plans and options, feel free to call our office at 519-720-9119 today – we’d love to hear from you.

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©2024 Parkway Dentistry
1-299 Wayne Gretzky Pkwy.,
Brantford, Ontario,
N3R 8A5, Canada
519-720-9119

About Us

Our Dentists Dr. Pio Modi, Dr. Usman Malik, Dr. Ryan Margel and our Brantford dental team provide high quality dentistry for the whole family.

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