TMJ, TMD & Bite Therapy
TMJ Therapy
Over 25 Years of Experience | Latest Dental Technology | Complimentary Consultations
Over 25 Years of ExperienceLatest Dental TechnologyFree Consultations
Don't Let Jaw Pain Hamper Your Quality of Life
You’ve probably heard people talk about TMJ. But what exactly is it? What they are talking about is the temporomandibular joint, otherwise known as the jaw joint where the bottom jaw connects to the top jaw. When this joint gets damaged, people suffer from pain and discomfort that impact their quality of life.
Grady L. Lembke, DDS
works with patients to help them find relief from issues related to jaw and TMJ dysfunction.
Symptoms of Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction
Most patients complain of a headache or an earache before they realize that they have jaw pain. Some people will experience pain while eating, talking, drinking, laughing, and even sleeping. Depending on how severe the symptoms are, people may also have redness and swelling around the jaw, experience radiating pain in their neck, shoulder, and upper back, and find it difficult to sleep.
If left untreated, the dysfunction can become overwhelming for some people and might lead to surgery to correct the joint issue. Many people will hear a clicking noise in their jaw when they eat, drink, or talk as well. Over time, the joint tissue can deteriorate and long-term effects can set in, including arthritis. It’s best to treat TMJ dysfunction as soon as symptoms arise to avoid long-term issues and permanent damage.
Treatment for TMJ Dysfunction
We’ll conduct a thorough assessment and take a history related to your dental health and TMJ dysfunction. Once we have determined that the issue is your jaw joint, we may recommend various treatment options, including an oral appliance to help relieve the stress on the jaw. This might be in the form of a nightguard to reduce bruxism, which is the grinding of teeth while you sleep, as well as alternating cold and hot compresses on the painful areas of the jaw.
Medication may be required to help reduce inflammation and pain at the joint site as well. We’ll work with you to ensure that the muscles of your jaw and face are not hyperactive and do not impact your jaw alignment. We make every effort to avoid putting patients through surgery or other invasive measures, even when the temporomandibular joint dysfunction is severe.
Bite Appliance Therapy
Bite appliances refer to night guards or splints, which are used to prevent a number of issues while a person sleeps. If you are suffering from ongoing headaches, jaw pain, neck pain, or if you have been told you grind your teeth while you sleep - known as bruxism - you may be a good candidate for a bite appliance or night guards. We provide patients with many options to stop pain, discomfort, and damage from occurring to their teeth while they sleep.
Benefits of Bite Appliance Therapy
Besides relieving pain in your shoulders, neck, jaw, face, or gums, bite appliances can also help prevent the breaking or cracking of teeth.
Bite appliances can save you from the discomfort associated with these symptoms. They can also save you from having to repair or replace your teeth.
What’s more, bite appliances such as night guards, can help improve the alignment in your bite, reduce swelling in the temporomandibular joint, and reduce muscle fatigue from clenching or grinding of teeth.
We Offer Bite Appliance Therapy in Edmond, OK
At our dental office in Edmond, OK, we help patients overcome pain and discomfort related to grinding teeth and clenching jaws with night guards. We use custom-fitted appliances that you can wear while you sleep to protect teeth from the damage done in your sleep.
We start by taking impressions of your teeth and our lab will create a nightguard that is just for you. You’ll be amazed at how well it fits over your existing teeth.
Nightguards act as a cushion between your teeth to stop them from coming in contact with each other. This prevents further damage from happening. Wearing a bite appliance does take a bit of getting used to, but for most patients, the adjustment period is a couple of weeks at most.
How Often Do You Have to Wear a Bite Appliance?
We will recommend a wearing schedule for you as part of our treatment process, but most people need to wear their bite appliance each night to prevent further damage from occurring. The more you wear it, the less likely you are to be impacted by long-term damage to your teeth, jaw, neck, and more. They are easy to clean and should be stored in a safe place when not in use.
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