Lancaster PA - Neuromuscular Dentistry - TMJ

More than 10 million Americans suffer from TMJ disorder, a condition that affects the function of the temporomandibular joint, or jaw joint. The TMJs are the small joints in the front of each ear that attach the lower jaw to the skull. They allow you to perform such functions as opening and closing your mouth, chewing, speaking, yawning, and swallowing.

If you suffer from symptoms such as migraines, jaw pain, sinus problems, earaches, ringing in the ears, dizziness, teeth grinding or clenching, TMJ treatment or neuromuscular dentistry can put an end to your pain!

Traditional dentistry focuses on your natural occlusion, or bite, as the best position for your jaw. Neuromuscular dentistry is used to determine the ideal position for your jaw.

Smilebuilderz' neuromuscular dentistry team, include the muscles, nerves, and supporting structures of the mouth during their thorough evaluation. The technology used at Smilebuilderz allows our TMJ specialists to measure, more accurately, the most comfortable position for muscles, teeth and jaw. Our neuromuscular dentistry team will help you achieve the best comfort and health by adjusting your jaw to a perfect resting position.

The Smildebuilderz neuromuscular dentistry team will want to conduct a thorough evaluation of your muscles, nerves and support structures of your mouth by

• Conducting a medical history, including questions about how long you've experienced pain, whether you've had an injury to your jaw, and whether you've had recent dental treatment.
• Listening to and feeling your jaw when you open and close your mouth, pressing on areas around your jaw for areas of pain or discomfort, and observing the range of motion you have with your jaw.
• Checking the alignment of the jaws to see if there are any abnormalities.
• Are there any conditions which might be causing your discomfort such as a high filling, teeth displaced due to earlier loss of other teeth, a crooked or tipped tooth, or certain inherited characteristics.
• Checking for wear patterns in your teeth which would indicate a chronic grinding condition.
• Reviewing whether or not you might be experiencing some type of stress or anxiety.

After your dental profile has been completed, the Smilebuilderz neuromuscular dentistry team will suggest a treatment plan which will include not only corrective dental treatment but at-home therapies which will aid in restoring your jaw structure to a comfortable and pain free position.

• Our TMJ dentistry team will evaluate the tension on your jaw structure and work with you to become aware of those times when you find yourself clenching your jaw, grinding your teeth, or chewing on your lip or on objects. These habits should be corrected in such a way that the jaw muscles become relaxed with your teeth slightly apart, the tongue lightly touching the roof of your mouth and resting directly behind your upper teeth.
• Your daily diet will be evaluated by our TMJ treatment team and they will advise you on foods you should eat which will not put a strain on your jaws – in other words giving your jaws a rest.
• To reduce inflammation and lessen your pain, our TMJ treatment plan may include taking aspirin or another nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug.
• If your jaw structure is misaligned, our TMJ dentists may recommend a plastic biteplate to be worn over your teeth, which will help to align your upper and lower jaws and reduce pressure.
• If it is determined that you are grinding your teeth in your sleep, a night guard appliance may be prescribed which can help prevent you from grinding and reduce excessive wear of your teeth.
• If our TMJ treatment team finds, after their evaluation, corrective dental treatment may be necessary by balancing the biting surfaces of your teeth, replacing missing teeth, or replacing needed fillings or crowns.
• As part of the TMJ treatment, our dental team might prescribe corticosteroid drugs to help reduce the significant pain and joint inflammation you are experiencing.
• A procedure, referred to as arthrocentesis, involves injecting fluid through the joint to remove debris and inflammatory byproducts.
• If, as a last resort, surgery is required to correct the TMJ condition, our oral and maxillofacial surgeon may find it beneficial to repair or remove the disk between your mandible and temporal bone. If the condition indicates that advanced osteoarthritis is present, other surgical procedures might be necessary to restore your jaw area to a pain free structure.