Did You Know Your Jaw Problem May Manifest as Headaches?

Each time you attend your six-month dental examination appointment, not only will the dentist check the health of your teeth and gums, but they will also check your dental occlusion.

If your teeth do not fit together properly, you can experience problems that can be much further reaching than just your teeth. You may experience problems with your gums, the temporomandibular joint or your facial and neck muscles.

This can be very confusing for patients, as the symptoms often seem unrelated. When you have a headache, your first thought often isn’t to visit the dentist. However, there are lots of conditions with your mouth and jaw that can present as aches in your head or neck, which is why it is vital to attend regular checkups.

Common jaw problems

If your teeth do not bite together properly, you may experience a number of different problems not just limited to your teeth including:

• Fillings may wear down quickly and eventually fall out.

• Your teeth might wear down unevenly and you might experience unusual wear and tear.

• Clicking, grinding or pain in your jaw joints, ringing in your ears and difficulty opening and closing your mouth.

• Muscle spasms, headaches, pain behind the eyes or sinus pains and pains in your neck and shoulders.

• Sensitivity when you bite your teeth together.

• Loose teeth or receding gums can become much worse when there are also issues with your jaw.

It is highly unlikely that you will have a perfect bite, but most people will never experience any problems because they have learnt to compensate for any problems. However, these compensations can lead to an array of problems.

It is also possible you may find that at times of high stress and tension the symptoms may appear but then go away. If you experience any of the above problems even only for a short time you should be sure to mention them to your dentist at your next appointment.

These symptoms may also be caused by grinding or clenching of your teeth, which may be something you are unaware that you do and often occurs at times of high stress or when you are concentrating on a task. If the problems are most acute in the morning, it may be that you are grinding your teeth in your sleep and are totally unaware that you are doing it.

What treatment is available?

There are a number of different treatments available. Depending on the severity of your symptoms, your dentist may be able to treat you or they may advise that you are referred to a specialist.

Custom mouth guard

If your dentist suspects that your symptoms are caused by an incorrect bite, they may advise you to wear a hard plastic appliance that fits over your upper and lower teeth and forces your teeth to meet in a position where your muscles are relaxed.

For some people, this can give instant relief. If this is the case you may need to consider getting your bite altered permanently or it may be necessary to replace missing teeth with a partial denture or bridge to help provide your jaw with equal support.

Changes to diet

For a short time, it may be advisable for you to focus on a soft diet. This will reduce the pressure put on your jaw joint and when combined with corrective exercises and applying heat can help to reduce symptoms.

If you find that you favour one side of your mouth when you chew, this could lead to uneven wear of your teeth and tension in your jaw. By addressing the problem and avoiding very hard, crunchy or chewy food, you can find relief from your pain.

These changes should be short-term, and you will be able to resume your usual diet once the issue is under control.

Orthodontic treatment

If your teeth are too far out of line or in a totally incorrect bite position, you may need to have an orthodontic appliance to help move them into a better position. Orthodontics, or braces, is a treatment that helps to move your teeth into the correct position. While it is often used for aesthetic reasons, it’s also possible to have this treatment to treat problems with your jaw.

Orthodontic treatment is not a quick fix, and it could take 6 – 24 months before the treatment is completed. After this, you will need to wear a retainer at night time to help keep your teeth in the correct position.

Night guard

If you are grinding or clenching your teeth at night, the dentist may advise that you wear a bite guard at night. This will help to protect your teeth from any further damage. A night guard can help to change the alignment of your teeth so that you can breathe more easily at night time.

The soft and supportive substance will also prevent you from damaging the biting surface of your teeth. However, it’s important to also look at the cause of your teeth grinding. It’s commonly caused by stress or anxiety, so you might want to explore options such as counselling to help understand the issue.

Counselling and relaxation therapy can also help you to become more aware of stressful situations and control tension.

Botox and muscle relaxing treatments

You might think that Botox is just to get rid of wrinkles, but it is also highly effective for treating conditions in the jaw. It can help to relax the muscles in your jaw so that you don’t grind your teeth or clench your jaw throughout the day.

The Botox is injected into the muscles and it will temporarily deactivate the muscles that are used to clench the jaw. This can provide relief from your symptoms while you explore other ways to address this problem.

Remember, you are not alone

It is estimated that up to 1 in 4 people may have some symptoms caused by an incorrect bite, with both men and women being equally affected. It’s a very common problem, and it is also very treatable once we know what we are dealing with.

The first step to finding relief is to book an appointment with your dentist. They will work with you to uncover the cause of the headaches and jaw ache and then explore treatment options that might help you to find relief.

So do not fear – book an appointment with the dentists at Leigh Dental Centre and see what they can do to improve your bite today. Call the surgery on 01702 472929 to book a consultation.