TMJ Treatment Calgary | TMJ Dentist & Therapy Clinic

Professional treatment is usually the only option for fixing TMJ problems, but in some situations, there are steps you can take at home to alleviate joint soreness and overuse.

If you’re experiencing TMJ pain at home, you can take an anti-inflammatory pain reliever such as ibuprofen to minimize soreness and inflammation of your muscles. Next, take care to avoid hard, crunchy, or chewy foods (including gum) that require heavy biting pressure. You may want to stick to a soft diet for a few days until symptoms subside.

During flare-ups, apply a warm compress to the side of your TMJ for up to 20 minutes at a time. Pay attention to circumstances related to your jaw pain to find triggers such as stress or bruxism.

If your symptoms don’t improve or keep coming back, be sure to speak to our Calgary dentist about a possible bite splint or mouthguard.

It depends! There’s a bit of “overlap” so to speak when it comes to insurance coverage for TMJ disorder. For example, if your TMJ pain is because of tooth misalignment and requires orthodontic therapy, it would revert back to underlying dental conditions. However, other conditions like sleep apnea or stress can also cause TMJ pain, making it more of a medical issue.

Since TMJ treatments fall within both medical and dental categories, it’s sometimes possible to file your insurance claims to one policy or the other. It all depends on the type of therapy that you and our Calgary TMJ dentist decide on.

Take bite splints for example. If you clench your teeth during the day because of a stressful job, a custom bruxism (grinding) appliance can alleviate muscle tension and pain. But it’s considered a dental appliance so the insurance claim would be applied to your oral health benefits.

If your TMJ disorder is so severe that it requires surgical intervention due to joint damage, your treatment would fall under the medical category.

The best place to go for TMJ treatment in Calgary is usually your family dentist. From here, we can evaluate your jaw joint and muscles to determine the primary factors that are contributing to your TMJ pain. However, if you have a degenerative bone or a disc inside of your TMJ, or your pain is because of an automobile accident, we would possibly refer you to a specialist like an oral surgeon for further evaluation.

A medical doctor can help with TMJ symptoms of pain or muscle fatigue, but if they’re caused by bruxism (clenching and grinding) you would still need to see a dentist to have a bite splint made. Physicians can prescribe muscle relaxers or pain medications (the same as dentists) but they’re not able to fit you with a custom oral appliance to manage TMJ disorder.

When you’re discussing your condition with our Calgary dentist, be sure to include any past injuries as such factors can affect the cause of your TMJ.

Although TMJ disorder is usually linked to jaw pain, headaches, and earaches, it can also cause tooth pain in some cases.

Since your teeth are held in place with hundreds of tiny ligaments surrounding the root, extensive clenching and grinding (bruxism) can lead to stretching and straining of these small fibres. Over time, your teeth can feel sore or even slightly loose.

Don’t confuse tooth mobility with TMJ disorder, though. In most cases, any loose teeth are at a bigger risk of having gum disease. So, if you notice teeth that are looser than normal, let your dentist know right away!

Most tooth soreness caused by TMJ disorder is noticed first thing in the morning when you wake up. Your teeth, jaws, and overall facial muscles may all feel fatigued or sore. If that’s the case, both TMJ disorder and sleep apnea need to be ruled out by an experienced dentist.

Excessive grinding caused by TMJ disorder can also cause broken and chipped tooth enamel along the gumlines. When that happens, the inner layer of the tooth is exposed and can be more sensitive to stimuli such as temperature changes. If you notice pain when you eat, tell us.

Clicking jaws can sometimes be corrected with rest, bite splints, or orthodontic treatment that aligns your teeth into a desirable position. But if TMJ clicking is severe or painful – which is quite rare – oral surgery could be necessary.

If you notice that your jaw clicks at specific times or if you move your mouth a certain way, make every effort to avoid repeating the clicking and popping that’s going on. In worst-case scenarios, a popping jaw could get stuck in an unnatural position.

Yes, just like clenching and grinding can cause pain in the muscles and ligaments around your TMJ, it can also cause strain on your teeth.

Each tooth has tiny ligaments across the root, connecting the teeth to the soft and bony tissues around it. Essentially, those ligaments stretch and pull – be it at microscopic levels – to allow the tooth to respond to biting pressure. When you’re clenching, grinding, and biting down really hard (more than normal) it can strain those tiny ligaments and make them sore. Although the area isn’t bruised, it may take a week or two for them to recover.

In the meantime, biting down on teeth with sore ligaments can make the them hurt. The soreness could be isolated in one area of your mouth, or across your entire bite. When there’s too much strain, the outer layer of your enamel can chip away, causing “abfractions” in the areas closest to the gums. As the enamel thickness decreases, the tooth becomes sensitive. Normal foods and drinks can send painful sensations shooting through those teeth.

Most TMJ treatments are dental in nature. As such, they’re covered by your dental insurance benefits. For example, we might recommend a bite splint because you’re grinding your teeth, which is causing your jaw pain. Bite splints are dental appliances made in our dental office, rather than prescribed by a medical doctor. Since they’re fitted and delivered by a dentist, your medical insurance doesn’t usually cover them.

On the other hand, if you have some type of degenerative issue going on inside of your jaw joint, you might require oral surgery to treat it. Since that’s a procedure only an oral surgeon can perform, both your medical and dental benefits should overlap to cover the necessary procedure.

To get a general idea of the costs related to treating TMJ, we encourage you to seek a consultation with our Calgary dentist. From there we’ll determine the likely causes and options available to correct them. At that time, you’ll have a better idea as to whether your treatment falls under medical or dental.

If for any reason these measures are not effective or do not offer TMJ pain relief, then we may recommend oral surgery on the joint. One example of when surgery is needed is if there are structural irregularities inside of the TMJ itself, which we can see on a CT scan or X-ray.

Deciding to get oral surgery for TMJ needs to be a well-thought-out process and requires lengthy recovery time. In most cases, a team of dental providers or surgeons will evaluate your jaw to determine the best type of surgery and create a care plan for you to review. Surgery is usually one of the last recommended treatment options for TMD, and only when there’s severe discomfort or the condition interferes with your daily quality of life.