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Posted on 9/30/2019 by Oral Surgery Specialists of Austin |
 Temporomandibular Joint Disorder, or TMJ, is a disorder that affects your jaw joint. Your jaw is actually a complex joint. Unlike your knee, which is a ball and socket joint, your jaw is a hinge joint. Like your other joints, it involves cartilage, muscles, and bones, but it also involves discs. This series of components are what allow you to move your jaw forward, backward, and from side to side. It also allows you to open and close your mouth. When you have a problem with the temporomandibular joint you may experience a variety of different symptoms. This is because the symptoms you exhibit are directly related to the joint component that is causing the problem. Problems with this joint can be caused by injury, Stress, arthritis, jaw erosion, clenching teeth and a variety of other reasons. Usually, you will notice pain when you chew or move your joint in different ways. However, there are symptoms that are more subtle that may not be readily apparent to you that this is the cause. What Other Symptoms Are There?Typically, you're we notice the problem, particularly if you tell us the symptoms are noticeable when you eat or you made an appointment because you had a toothache. We would also suspect TMJ if you told us about the more subtle symptoms, but typically those are reported to our patients' physicians. One of the more subtle symptoms, for example, is that you get headaches. You are more likely to tell your physician about headaches because you won't view that as a dental issue. If you told us we would certainly investigate TMJ as a cause. Other symptoms too, would typically be reported to your physician. TMJ can cause pain in your neck or shoulders. It can also cause swelling on the side of your face. Those two symptoms would likely send you to the doctor. Pain near your ear or dizziness is also symptoms of TMJ as are hearing problems or ringing in your ears. You can see why these more subtle issues would bring you to a physician rather than to us. If your jaw is locked or you have trouble opening and closing it you may come to us or your physician, but if your symptoms is a clicking feeling or grating feeling when you open your mouth or close it, you may be more likely to come to us. Either way, TMJ can be diagnosed and fixed depending on the cause. If you suspect you have it, give us a call. |
