TMJ Therapy

Headaches are often associated with TMJ. What does it mean when someone says they have TMJ? The TMJ stands for TemporoMandibular Joint. Simply stated it is the jaw joint. The actual disc in the joint is made mostly from cartilage. It has an “hour-glass” shape. This joint is set in motion and use every time you open or close your mouth. Much like other living tissues in the body, the disc has a nerve and blood supply. As you open and close your mouth, the disc allows for smooth sliding motion between the lower jaw bone and the upper jaw. In the absence of disease, the sliding motion is smooth, free of any sounds, clicking or popping and without pain. However, this delicate joint can be easily thrown out of balance due to any number of reasons.

When the jaw joint is affected by some disorder or disease, people refer to the condition as "having TMJ." It would be more appropriate to call it TMD (disease of the TMJ).

Most common signs of having TMD are clicking, popping and pain upon opening or closing. Other signs of having TMD can include ear aches, ear stuffiness, ringing in the ears, headaches, neck aches, sore facial muscles and facial pain. Yet other symptoms include light sensitivity, itchiness of the ears, abnormal swallowing, dizziness, loss of balance, inability to fall sleep easily. Due to the debilitating effects of this disorder the symptoms are often followed by anxiety and eventual depression. In treating TMJ disorders correctly, we need to find the source of the problem and correct it and not just deal with the symptoms. Most of the time this disorder is treated non-surgically. Hardly ever is there need for pain medication of any nature once the treatment is under way. To learn more about TMJ disorders, visit us at www.tmj-therapy.com.