There are around 360 joints in the
human body, some of them being load-bearing type like
the hip and knee joints while others help perform many
physical functions. These joints are usually of two
different varieties – hinge type and ball-and-socket
type. However, the temporomandibular joint where the
mandible, which is the lower jaw bone, attaches itself
to the temporal bone of the skull is totally different
from any of the above two. Part of it works like a
hinge, permitting the jaws to open and close while
another part allows the mandible to slide forward to
gain a better bite. However, when something goes wrong
with this joint, there is pain which at times can become
quite unbearable.
All joints
can be affected by various diseases including
degenerative joint diseases like osteoarthritis and
rheumatoid arthritis causing pain and the
temporomandibular joint does not prove to be an
exception to this. In addition, when someone suffers
from the TMJ disorder, the person can suffer from
bruxism, i.e. incessant teeth clenching as well as from
trauma. Apart from other causes, TMJ develops pain when
the bone structure in the joint degenerates or there is
considerable loss of the cartilage known as the
disc.
Even
though attempts are made to surgically repair the
cartilage, it hasn’t proved successful yet. Although TMJ
pain originates in the joint, the actual pain
nevertheless is felt through the facial tissues,
ligaments and muscles. Sometimes it radiates to the neck
and shoulders too. The from the TMJ syndrome at times
gets critical as the person is unable to open the mouth
and becomes unable to eat. TMJ relief in such cases
becomes very important.
However,
studies have shown that the facial muscles, particularly
the tempolaris that spreads out to the mandible or the
lower jaw creates maximum pain which is often mistakenly
attributed to migraine. TMJ jaw pain can be acute or
chronic – acute when it begins unexpectedly but goes
away on its own, and chronic when the pain persists and
never goes away. Also, the jaw muscle often goes into
spasm in its effort to hold the jaw bone tight and in
the process becomes painful.
Notable
Types Of TMJ Pain & What Causes
Them
- People
who suffer from temporomandibular joint pain, also
experience pain that is usually confined to a small
area just in front or below the ear. Unlike pain
caused due to infection or trauma to the ear, TMJ ear
pain is not accompanied by any discharge or drainage
from the ear, and it does not cause loss of hearing
and other related problems.
- TMJ
induced headache is different from other forms of
migraine that are caused by vision faults, strenuous
eye work or that which accompanies high fever. Instead
of experiencing relief when coming in contact with
cool soothing air, it flares up considerably as the
muscles in the joint undergo
contractions.
- Even
though most people suffering from the TMJ disorder
complain about facial soreness, some describe it as a
shooting pain while many experience nothing but a dull
ache. This is probably caused by the contraction of
muscles which varies from person to person. In other
words, the pain becomes intense when the muscles
contract faster as compared to ‘dull ache’ when the
tightening effect is of a slower nature.
- Most
people suffering from restricted jaw movement that
include locked jaws, popping or clicking sound every
time the jaw is opened or closed also experience pain
that may vary from casual to agonizing type in fear of
which some of them refrain from opening their mouth
even to feed. This type of pain is caused by
constriction of jaw muscles that react to misaligned
jaws.
- It is a
common fact that victims of TMJ are prone to suffer
from stiffness as well as soreness in the jaw, neck,
back and the facial region. Some of them are caused by
muscle contraction while others are related to
pressure created at the area due to malfunction of the
TMJ.
TMJ Pain
Relief Measures
TMJ pain
can be quite bad and thus it needs a quick and permanent
remedy. Many people have tried many things – such as
home TMJ remedies, exercises to relieve TMJ, and of
course conventional medications that include drugs and
surgery and also over the counter solutions that include
mouthguards and splints. But the problem is, most of
these TMJ treatment measures fail to deliver the
results. Surgeries can be risky and should always be
attempted after consultation with the physician. Home
remedies can give some relief, as does exercises, but
the relief is never permanent, as TMJ can be chronic in
nature.
It seems
that the only thing that works is holistic remedies.
Treating the body as a whole, holistic remedies identify
all the contributing factors that cause TMJ and then
treat them all. Once all the contributing factors are
treated, the symptoms go away and it is treated
permanently. This is a better approach than conventional
treatments because they just treat the symptoms and not
the real underlying causes.
