What are some treatments for TMJ disorder?

Answer 1

There are two basic cures, depending on the root cause of your TMJ.

If it is related to grinding/clenching your teeth, I would recommend a night guard. They open up your mouth and stop grinding/clenching pressures. For that, you will need to see a DDS with a referral from your doctor.

For other cases, it is best not to try the mouth exercises commonly recommended by many sites. There is a much better way, and it takes only two weeks:

For those two weeks, you must partake in minimal talking, and go on a strictly puree diet while taking anti-inflammatory medication such as Motrin or Advil.

Before you try this, however, SEE YOUR DOCTOR. He will tell you the correct dosage of medication. You may also see a DDS.

Source: I had TMJ, and the DDS I went to had me try this.

8/9/12

TMJ can not be cured - it's the abbreviation for the Temporal Mandibular Joint. A bite guard can limit damage to teeth and dental work of a chronic bruxer (silent clenching or teeth grinding). A chronic bruxer may do much more clenching while sleeping than during daytime eating, so avoid solid food wouldn't help the chronic bruxwer.

But most people who get a sore TMJoint will be able to calm it down with the above advice to rest the jaw and take anti-inflammatories. And avoiding medications that can kick up bruxism is wise (SSRI antidepressants are one candidate), so tapering with a doctor is smart, and muscle relaxants are a very short term help if you're not a chronic bruxer and just need to rest, but again, you need a doctor to make sure you are not interacting with other conditions or drugs.

TMJ disorder is a name for a lot of yet-to-be-defined problems, and the National Institute of Health says that all invasive treatments are unproven and contested. And that means all the most popular treatments, that are invasive and bite changing, like the progressive splints, ortho, NTI devices, surgeries, etc. http://www.nidcr.nih.gov/oralhealth/topics/tmj/lessisbest.htm

The NIDCR has deferred doing a study to see how much of TMJDisorders are caused by chronic bruxism (silent clenching or audible teeth grinding). They are first looking at possible co-conditions like fibromyalgia and at genetic susceptibilities to TMJD pain sensitivity.

I spent $$$ trying all the contested treatments and surgeries, except titanium replacement. One of my ball joints is a raggedy D shape, and what little discs I have left, are stuck displaced. I dislocate and lock, and all my scans, topos, etc. are ugly. Specialists who use these structural analyses to justify their contested treatments are basically diagnosing by treatment. That means you buy some expensive treatment and hope, if it works, that it verifies the assumed diagnosis.

My real problem was chronic bruxism, and a thin mouthguard did reduce damage to my teeth and dental work, but bite changing and/or progressive splints just leveraged more onto my wrecked TMJoints. Botox and muscle relaxants (and sacral cranial massage, etc.) gave me temporary relief. Don't Botox, since it causes significant long term jaw bone loss.

I finally got an ironclad diagnosis now that you can rent an iPod sized EMG unit for home sleep studies from a dentist. If any dentist or doctor wants to do analyses and treatments without ruling out bruxism first (mine was silent clenching), they get a big, "Why?" from me. And EMG home sleep studies are how you can monitor whether a treatment is working or not - so no surprise that bite changing jargonists might not tell you about it. http://www.grindcare.com/us/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=90&Itemid=112

The biofeedback option stopped my bruxism (it's not as well studied/proven as EMG, but it worked for me, and doesn't mess with your sleep patterns). So all the usual treatments just blew my savings, and non-invasive EMG sleep studies showed the real problem was the hundreds of times a night I was clenching with all my might. And anyone who tells someone with a chronic, subconscious, neuromuscular disorder to chill out, which only helps prevent your everyday bruxing from progressing? Well, get an ironclad diagnosis, or rule out chronic bruxism, before you start spending lots of money.

I can't sing with a band anymore, and avoid gum, but am off the expensive, false hope bandwagon of TMJD treatments that, at best, temporarily interrupt a chronic problem. P.S. I love cosmetic dentistry, but trying to justify it as a cure for TMJD related pain is self-defeating, and as the NIH says, unjustifiable.

Answer 2

i don't think there is one, wish there was but ive had it for almost a year and they are finally doing something about it, I'm having a mouthguard fitted so i stop grinding my teeth in the night, i pray it works. But it really depends what is causing it, i suggest you find out.

Answer 3

There are a few potential treatments for TMJ disorder. Pain relief medication is used, sedatives and antidepressants. Physical therapy and counseling is used and in some extreme cases surgery.