Don’t let headaches and migraines rule your life! For TMD treatment and symptom relief, call Dr. Matthew Bridges and the team at Chisholm Trail Smile Center in Duncan. Located on West Elk Ave., our dental office serves patients of all ages. To schedule a TMD consultation, call 580-255-4880.

In today’s blog, you’ll learn:

• Causes of TMD
• Symptoms and Misdiagnoses Related to TMD
• Non-surgical treatment for TMD

What’s causing your headaches, migraines, and jaw pain?

Under your ears, about an inch toward your face, you can feel bulges under your cheeks. These are the hinge joints that hold your lower jaw to your skull, and they’re called TMJs or temporomandibular joints. When you open and close your mouth, the joints should glide, not click, pop, or lock.

All of your lower jaw movements involve the TMJs: speaking, eating, drinking, yawning, etc. If your TMJs ache, the connected muscles may feel sore because when your mouth is closed, they aren’t properly seated so they never rest. Even while you sleep, misaligned jaw joints continue trying to hold the mandible in the correct resting position, which offers no rest at all!

So what’s the root cause of TMD? One or more of these causes can trigger TMD:

• Stress
• Genetics
• Arthritis
• Jaw injury
• Bruxism
• Malocclusion
• Disc erosion
• Damaged cartilage

Symptoms of TMD

As stated, headaches, migraines, and popping or clicking jaw joints are common symptoms of TMD. You may also notice one or more of these symptoms as well as a declining quality of life.

• Pain in or over the TMJs
• Tenderness or aching of the jaw
• Earaches or tinnitus
• Jerky or painful chewing
• General pain in the face
• Joint locking, so you cannot fully open or close your mouth
• Limited range of motion in jaw joints
• Tooth pain in molars
• Vertigo or dizziness
• Swelling over or around the jaw joint(s)
• Neck and/or shoulder pain

The following conditions are sometimes misdiagnoses of TMD, according to the Merck Manual:

• Sinusitis
• Giant cell arteritis
• Tension or cluster headaches
• Postherpetic neuralgia
• Complex regional pain syndrome type 1
• Head or neck trauma
• Toothache
• Cardiac pain
• Salivary gland disorders
• Obstruction of ear canals or eustachian tubes
• Otitis media
• Fibromyalgia
• Whiplash affecting muscles or cervical spine
• Eagle syndrome
• Glossopharyngeal neuralgia
• Subacute thyroiditis
• Depressed fracture of the zygomatic arch
• Infection
• Pericoronitis
• Tetanus
• Osteochondroma of the coronoid process

TMD Treatment

At Chisholm Trail Smile Center in Duncan, Dr. Bridges offers TMD diagnosis and TMD treatment, without surgery. A simple oral appliance known as a TMD night guard keeps upper and lower teeth from touching while you sleep, ending any clenching and grinding issues (called bruxism).

The appliance also holds the jaw joints in their proper resting position, so they can actually rest and recuperate while you sleep. While this non-invasive treatment solution is not effective on TMD patients who need surgery, most TMD cases can be effectively treated without surgery, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Some patients wear the night guard indefinitely. Others find that the appliance retrains jaw joint musculature so that the jaw retains its ideal resting position when the mouth is closed, without wearing the night guard. These patients do not have to wear the night guard forever but can use it if and when symptoms reemerge.

If you suffer from TMJ pain, headaches, and other symptoms of TMD, contact us today to schedule a consultation with Dr. Bridges. You can submit a message online from our website or call 580-255-4880. We will help you get out of pain, once and for all!

The post TMD Treatment for Headache & Jaw Pain Relief appeared first on Chisholm Trail.

General dentists are trained in a wide range of dental procedures, and most dental problems are treatable in our office. However, when necessary Dr. Matthew L. Bridges, our general dentist in Duncan, OK, will collaborate with an oral and maxillofacial surgeon to treat issues that require oral surgery. If you have oral or jaw pain, contact Chisholm Trail Smile Center at 580-255-4880 to schedule an appointment with Dr. Bridges.

Education

Both general dentists required to complete a bachelor’s degree and four additional years of dental school. During this time, students study anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, pathology, and oral surgery. They also gain hands-on training to learn how to diagnose and treat dental problems. At the completion of these four years, a general dentist will go on to pass a licensure exam.

Oral surgeons, on the other hand, have the option of dental school or medical school. After four years of either schooling is complete, they will continue their education with four to six more years of a surgical residency. The Commission on Dental Accreditation requires that oral surgeons obtain additional training in oral pathology, anesthesia, and oral surgery. The doctor can then complete and pass a board certification.

What Dentists and Dental Surgeons Do for Patients

General dentists do more than just perform checkups; they can address most oral health problems. In a day’s work, a dentist may:

• Examine, diagnose, and treat oral diseases, injuries, and teeth and gum abnormalities
• Treat dental nerve and pulp disease – root canal therapy
• Fit and install dental restorations and prosthetics – crowns, bridges, dentures, implants
• Create and fit oral appliances – bite guards, night guards, TMJ devices
• Providing preventative, restorative, and cosmetic dental care
• Install and manage dental braces cases for orthodontics

This is not a comprehensive list of all a general dentist can do, but you get the idea. They do a lot!

All dentists are trained and prepared to carry out these duties. If you are experiencing pain in or around your mouth, the dentist should be your first stop. He will recommend an oral surgeon if he believes you need one.

Oral surgeons usually work with a patient’s referring general dentist to ensure a positive treatment outcome for the patient’s long-term good oral health. The oral surgeon can perform surgery and other procedures related to the oral and maxillofacial (jaw) regions. The responsibilities of oral surgeons include performing surgery and procedures on the hard and soft tissues of the mouth, face, and jaw because of:

• Disease
• Injury
• Defects
• Dysfunction
• Appearance

Dr. Bridges’ Interdisciplinary Approach

Dr. Bridges will always recommend and work with an oral surgeon on behalf of his patient when the situation requires it. He refers his patients only to respected, proven oral surgeons who put patient care first. The following scenarios may require an oral surgeon’s expertise:

• Impacted wisdom teeth
• TMJ disorder
• Overbite/underbite
• Dental implants
• Sleep apnea
• Oral cancer
• Cleft lip or palate

In many of these cases, the oral surgeon and dentist will collectively create a treatment plan that best meets the patient’s needs. This usually requires work from both parties. As is the case with dental implants—an oral surgeon will install the implant in your jaw and Dr. Bridges will design and secure the restoration, once your gums have healed.

In this way, both professionals work together to give the patient high-quality, comprehensive care.

Visit Your General Dentist in Duncan, OK

If you are experiencing pain in and around your mouth because of wisdom teeth, a cavity, jaw problems, or an unknown source, call Dr. Bridges to schedule a visit, so he can to diagnose and treat your issue. Most dental concerns can be treated in our office, but if necessary Dr. Bridges will refer you to an oral surgeon.

The post What’s the difference between a dentist and a dental surgeon? appeared first on Chisholm Trail.