TMJ stands
for the Temporomandibular Joint which is located where
the lower jaw bone called the mandible joins the
temporal bone of the skull in the form of a hinge, thus
allowing the jaws to open or close. Apart from acting as
a hinge, the temporomandibular joint also permits the
lower jaw to slide forward to facilitate a good bite as
also to align itself for comfortable biting, chewing of
food items. The TMJ is conveniently provided with a soft
disc or a cartilage that serves as a buffer between the
temporal bone and the mandible, absorbing minor shocks
caused to the joint while chewing or biting. Moreover,
the joint is linked with facial tissues, muscles, nerves
and ligaments that help functioning of this jaw joint
satisfactorily.
What Is
The TMJ Disorder And What Causes
It?
The
temporomandibular joint often creates problem that is
commonly termed as TMJ disorder. It is associated with
pain, difficulty in masticating, problems in opening or
closing the mouth, headache, ear ache, ear ringing
(Tinnitus), loss of hearing and many other troubles that
are difficult to cure.
On account
of its proximity to the ear, set of teeth, the muscles,
nerves, ligaments and bones, each one of them should be
separately tackled to reach a conclusive analysis of the
cause and effect of the actual disorder. Incidentally,
researchers are still not very sure whether tinnitus
causes TMJ or vice versa. As a matter of fact, the
nerves that serve the middle ear bones are also
connected to the temporomandibular joint and hence their
relationship with each other may not be overlooked. To
be more precise, a ligament (known as Pinto’s Ligament)
adjoins the temporomandibular joint with the smaller
bones within the mid ear causing Otomandibular Syndrome
that has come under the research of Dr. Harold Arlan,
MD, Otolaryngology Surgery’s Assistant Clinical
Professor at the Medicine
College and
Dentistry of New Jersey and Rudkers Medical School. Dr. Arlan
conclusively believes that Tinnitus and TMJ disorders
are interdependent of each other.
However
the TMJ syndrome is often caused due to chronic or
severe inflammation of the temporomandibular joint,
degenerative joint diseases like osteoarthritis,
rheumatoid arthritis, bruxism and trauma. As a matter of
fact, the jaw joint like any other joint in the body can
be affected by arthritis resulting in disintegration of
the joint, gradual loss of cartilage, and in some cases,
the formation of unwanted new bone structure and this
upsets its normal movement. Rheumatoid arthritis, as we
are aware, causes inflammation of the joint, which in
the case of TMJ can have alarming effects in children.
Since it is an autoimmune disease concerning antibody
factor against immunoglobulin G (IgG), it creates
various inflammatory disorders in the
TMJ.
Since TMJ
can be diagnosed through checking the symptoms, these
are listed below for the convenience of the reader.
Nevertheless, while some of the symptoms are easy to
find, there are others that are tricky and
deceptive.
Simple,
Easy To Recognize TMJ Symptoms
- Pain in
the jaw; difficulty in opening and closing the jaw;
clicking or popping sound with the opening or closing
the mouth.
- Inflammation
of the temporomandibular joint accompanied by
tenderness in the neighboring muscles, ligaments,
tissues and bones.
- Facial
pain (myofascial pain syndrome) that often becomes
unbearable.
- Headache
and earache.
- Feeling
of stuffiness in the ears.
- Sinus
stuffiness.
TMJ
Symptoms Which Are Deceptive Or
Misleading
- Sensitivity
to light, pain behind the eyeball, feeling of pressure
behind the eyes, blurred vision, night vision
seriously affected.
- Cluster
headache, migraine type of headache, sinus type
headache and painful condition in the forehead, scalp
and the hair roots.
- Tinnitus
type of ringing, hissing, whooshing, roaring sounds in
the ear.
- Progressive
hearing loss with feeling of fullness in single or
both ears.
- Pain in
the neck and shoulders in chronic
cases.
- Sore
throat, even though there is no infection or other
peripheral factor.
- Numbness
in fingers.
- Dull
back pain and stiffness in the
area.
Treatment
Options For The Temporomandibular Joint
Disorder
When
someone is suffering, TMJ relief always becomes a
priority. But sadly, though with conventional treatments
(drugs and surgery) and over the counter solutions
(mouthguards and splints) does offer some relief, but it
is so short lived that very soon the symptoms of TMJ
disorders come back to haunt the person once more. This
happens because the root cause of the problem has
remained hidden within the body and the treatment just
targeted the symptoms.
What truly
works for TMJ is a unique set of daily exercise that can
relax the muscles in the face, shoulder and the head.
These TMJ exercises have been proven to deliver results.
Holistic remedies are also a great help in this.
Holistic remedies treat the body as a whole and identify
all the contributing factors and once they are gone, the
TMJ symptoms go too.
