Preventing dental damage and alleviating headaches and TMJ symptoms: Understanding Nightguards for Teeth Grinding
Chips, cracks, and wear may be more obvious signs of chronic teeth grinding, a condition known as bruxism. However, bruxism is also associated with TMJ symptoms. Signs of temporomandibular joint dysfunction or disorders, collectively called TMJDs, range from persistent headaches to tinnitus or ringing in the ears. These symptoms can have an outsized, negative effect on your life and only get worse and more frequent without proper treatment. Proper treatment at the office of Abingdon Smiles in Abingdon, Virginia, may involve special dental appliances or “nightguards.”
Why does bruxism cause symptoms of TMJD?
It’s been said that the forces placed on the teeth from grinding behaviors are so strong that you could crack a walnut with them! So, you can imagine the damage that can be done not only to your teeth but to the tissues that surround them. TMJDs are characterized by damage to the jaw joints or TMJs that are responsible for opening and closing your mouth. They can become inflamed or damaged due to the extensive forces placed on them from chronic, untreated bruxism. Such damage often manifests as radiating facial, jaw, neck, shoulder, and back pain and a loss of jaw mobility or stiffness, migraines, earaches, and tinnitus.
What is a nightguard?
Nightguards are oral appliances that are placed in the mouth before you go to bed. Since many people have nocturnal bruxism and grind their teeth involuntarily during sleep, these devices are called “nightguards.” When worn consistently and as directed, the device “guards” the teeth and tissues. It protects these oral tissues from the damage caused by the extreme forces placed on them when patients grind their teeth and clench their jaws during sleep.
Are all nightguards the same?
No. Nightguards at the dentist’s office are made to fit your mouth and your mouth only. The appliances you get at the store are not made from impressions or models of your teeth. Such truly customized devices can, in turn, optimally protect your teeth and other parts of your mouth. They are also much more comfortable to wear. You are more likely to wear a nightguard that doesn’t slip around or irritate the inside of your mouth. Last but definitely not least, our nightguards are made to last. They are designed from high-performance materials, which means you don’t have to replace them as often. We also assess the condition and fit of the guard at every dental checkup.
Do all of your nightguards help with TMJD?
Oral appliances come in a variety of different designs. One of the designs we use is an NTI-tss, which stands for “nociceptive trigeminal inhibition tension suppression system.” We know that is a mouthful, but NTI devices are very small, lightweight, and fit over the front teeth. Due to the design, this device is associated with dramatically reduced muscle activity (it doesn’t allow the back teeth to touch when biting down forcefully). In fact, FDA studies have found that 82% of migraine sufferers experienced a 77% reduction in migraine symptoms.
Don’t snooze on the far-reaching consequences of untreated bruxism. Call Abingdon Smiles of Southwest VA at (276) 628-7862 to get one big step closer to pain relief and effectively protecting your smile.
