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TMJ and Headaches

Did you know migraine headaches can be caused by TMJ issues? A misaligned jaw can be the reason for many pains and discomforts.

Normally, you would not think of taking your migraine headache issues to a dentist. Most people go to the doctor and get medication if the need persists. Or, they just live with it and ride out the headaches. It takes some research, a heads-up referral, and often a lot of frustration before some migraine sufferers finally seek out a neuromuscular dentist.

Misaligned jaws can cause a number of issues beyond simple jaw popping and pain. This is how most people know TMJ, so to connect TMJ with migraines may seem a difficult jump to make. In truth, it is not. In layman’s terms, the muscles and nerves that surround the jaw area are affected when the bite it not right. A misaligned bite may cause localized pain at the jaw but the effects radiate out to nearby areas. Naturally, this can cause severe headaches and even migraines.

If you or someone you know has migraines, why not ask them to call my office for a TMJ test that will let them know if I can help their migraine problem. Better to treat the cause for a lifetime, than to continue to treat the symptoms for the moment with medications that may not always work.

New Guidelines from The American Heart Association

There was a recent article on The American Dental Association web site that published a recent revision in the recommended use of anti-biotics prior to a dental visit. These new recommendations apply to many dental procedures, including teeth cleaning and extractions.

For years, The American Heart Association advised patients take antibiotics just before a dental visit if they have certain heart conditions. The prevailing thought has been that doing so would prevent infective endocarditis, also known as bacterial endocarditis.

The latest guidelines published in the AHA’s scientific journal in April 2007 adjusts their recommendation. In short, the AHA recommends that most patients with heart conditions not take short-term antibiotics before a visit to the dentist as a precaution for endorcarditis.

Preventive antibiotics prior to a dental procedure still are advised for patients with:

1. artificial heart valves
2. a history of infective endocarditis
3. certain specific, serious congenital (present from birth) heart conditions, including
* unrepaired or incompletely repaired cyanotic congenital heart disease, including those with palliative shunts and conduits
* a completely repaired congenital heart defect with prosthetic material or device, whether placed by surgery or by catheter intervention, during the first six months after the procedure
* any repaired congenital heart defect with residual defect at the site or adjacent to the site of a prosthetic patch or a prosthetic device
4. a cardiac transplant that develops a problem in a heart valve.

Patients with congenital heart disease can have complicated circumstances. They should check with their cardiologist if there is any question at all as to the category that best fits their needs.

You can learn more about this at ada.org.

Periodontal care and your overall wellness

We are interested in your general wellness and that means remembering periodontal care. A few common facts you may know are that there is link between periodontal disease and heart disease. There are also links between periodontal disease and diabetes and low birth weight babies. An indicator is bleeding gums when brushing or flossing. This is not a normal state. It is an indication of this disease. The disease does not go away with mere brushing. It is a degenerative disease that can be slowed and controlled at best. If ignored it can and does lead to the above degenerative diseases.

What many people do not know is that certain conditions can increase the likelihood for periodontal disease. For instance, if you are in a high stress life style or career or if you have poor coping skills in dealing with stress, you are at higher risk for periodontal disease.

At Briarwood dental, we have a very well trained hygienist who is certified in laser treatment of periodontal disease. This is by far the most effective, least invasive and most comfortable method available today for treating periodontal disease, but it is still not widely used in the majority of dental offices. Scraping with instruments below the gum line is still the most common practice for treatment, called "root planing and scaling". Though even this is much better than doing nothing, better methods are now available, and we are very proud that we are offering these less invasive and more effective methods here in our office.

Our commitment to personal attention

I hope that my patients know my commitment to personal attention. This is one of the important elements that I think separates my practice from other dentists. It has always been my intention to make patients feel at home in our dental office. This goes well beyond simply being polite while performing your dental care.

There is an obvious, warm quality that goes along with genuine personal attention. It is our goal for our patients to experience this when they come to us for a visit. Why? It's how we really feel. So, it is important to us that you know this.

How many times do you go to a business or a professional service and you feel like a number? You are the next one in line, so now it is your time to get your service. That is not how we operate here and, every once in a while, I like to make it a point for our team to focus on this fact.

When you visit us for your dental needs, we want you to feel our genuine interest in your care. Call it personal attention… but it is all about caring.

It’s surprising so many people live with this kind of pain

Part of the continuing education I have taken courses on treating Tempromandibular Joint Disorder. Many people know this condition as TMJ, which is usually known for causing jaw pain. However, TMJ is much more complicated disorder and many people live with the pain.

Basically, TMJ is a misalignment of the jaws and it can cause a lot more than jaw pain. TMJ can manifest itself in the form of head, neck and shoulder pain in addition to jaw pain. It can also cause a ringing in the ears.

Because there are so many symptoms that are not associated directly with the jaw, it is common for people to see a doctor for their pain instead of a dentist. This is often the reason why TMJ goes undiagnosed. The sufferer complains about headaches and a battery of tests for severe headaches may not turn up TMJ unless the doctor is looking for it. This is why many TMJ sufferers have been told the pain is “just in their head” after a visit to their general practitioner.

I have learned advanced treatments for TMJ and I help people with this disorder all the time. If you are suffering from these persistent pains and just living with it because you cannot get your pain diagnosed properly, please call me or email me here. The same goes for anyone you know who might be simply living with TMJ pain. I can help.