TMJ Therapy
The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is what connects your jaw to your skull, and the key to moving your mouth fluidly. If you have TMJ disorder, it can impact your ability to yawn, eat, and speak, which can be far more than just an inconvenience. TMJ therapy is the treatment that dentists in Wyoming, OH use to not just manage the pain but to improve and abate your condition.
How Do Dentists Treat TMJ?
Dentists can treat TMJ via a number of methodologies:
- Relaxation exercises: If your TMJ in Wyoming, OH is caused by jaw tension, a dentist can demonstrate exercises that can help you holistically treat the issue.
- Appliances: Dental appliances can keep your upper and lower teeth apart, potentially bringing your joints back into alignment for better range of motion.
- Orthodontics: Taking the appliance category one step further, a dentist might refer their patients to an orthodontist if they have more severe misalignment and require braces or clear aligners.
- Surgery: At the most extreme end, you may need surgery to coordinate both the upper and lower jaw. Again, in this case, a dentist may need to refer you to a reputable oral surgeon in the Wyoming area.
How Do Dentists Alleviate Pain?
Pain management may not correct the issue, but it can be valuable to patients while they’re working on mitigating the disorder. A dentist may recommend anything from hot/cold therapy to medication to help you keep pain at bay.
The best dentists will scale their efforts based on patient symptoms, X-rays, and preferences. As you can tell by the sheer range of treatments, the severity of TMJ disorder can run the gamut. For example, a slight tear in the cartilage of the joint might be resolved in a couple of days while a severely damaged joint could take months to heal.
TMJ disorder may start off barely noticeable and then progress until you can’t ignore it any more. Ideally, you’ll get treatment sooner than later, especially when the disk of your joint might be suffering from continuous erosion. At Wyoming Family Dentistry, we offer therapeutic measures that can do more than just relieve the pain for a night or two.
