TMJ Treatment

Commonly referred to as TMJ disorder, or properly named TMD. This ailment can be caused by injury, malocclusion, and teeth grinding. The majority of symptoms are felt throughout the craniofacial area. Because it covers such a wide array of causes and symptoms, finding appropriate treatment can be a sensitive process. After an in-depth analysis of your facial muscles, bite, and top and bottom jaws, we can make an informed treatment recommendation customized for your unique situation. 

Temporomandibular joint and muscle disorders (TMD disorders) negatively affect the chewing muscles and joints that connect your lower jaw to your skull. There are two of these joints on either side of your mouth that attaches your jaw to the bottom of your skull, allowing your jaw to move up, down, back to front, and side to side. The muscles near them are what make it possible for you to open and close your mouth, but if the joints get out of line, it makes everyday movements painful and potentially impossible. 

If you experience pain in one or both of your jaw joints, consistent earaches, pain when you chew, a clicking or popping sound when you bite, pain in your face, pain in your neck, stiff jaw muscles, or a change in your bite, it’s possible that you have TMD. TMD can be caused by a number of factors: when cartilage in the joint slips out of place, injury, a dislocated jaw, misalignment of the teeth or jaw, arthritis, malocclusion, and more. 

To determine if you have TMD, Dr. Angart will ask about your symptoms and examine your jaw. To do so, he’ll carefully listen to and feel your jaw as you open and close your mouth. That will tell him where the problem area is, and where it might have stemmed from. He’ll also look at your jaw’s range of motion to see if it’s been impacted. 

Once Dr. Angart makes a diagnosis he may recommend a bite splint to help keep your mouth in the proper position, which can often alleviate a lot of pain. New Albany Smiles has all the means available, on-site, to make your custom bite splint fit comfortably in your mouth.