TMJ & jaw popping.

[IloveWINNIEthePOOH]

My older brother (20) has TMJ. His jaw pops every time he chews. He's been to the doctor about it, and they gave him a prescription/muscle relaxers for it. It didn't do anything. The doctor said the only thing that would fix it, since the prescription/muscle relaxers didn't work, would be surgery. But, the doc also said that my brother can not have surgery yet, due to him being to young.
Do you, or anyone you know of, have TMJ/jaw popping? Do you do or know of anything to alleviate the popping and pain? It has been bothering him alot lately, and was hoping there might be something to help it some.
TIA so much for any help!!!!!

 

[janette]

My DH's jaw pops constantly. A long time ago he was in pain; they used muscle relaxers and it worked. The only real cure is surgery and he just doesn't want to do that.

 

[DawnCt1]

i have a df who has a traumatic unjury to her jaw which has resulted in essentially tmj. i do know, after observing what she has gone through, is that there are no pat answers. some people do great with surgery, others end up worse off. she has been to 3 or 4 docs who are ranked highly in thir field, almost none agree with the other. she is a radiologist so she fully understands her own xrays, etc. if it were my jasw, i would seek out the chief of the dept. at the local university dental schppl and then i would travel elsewhere to confirm the course of treatment with a second or third opinion. do not think that is my approach for everthing medical, it isn't but jaws seem to fall in that category.

 

[PrincessCLM]

Probably not much help, but in PT school we did learn a bit about TMJ and there are some practicing therapists who know how to treat it. Maybe ask for a second opinion and see if they think some physical therapy will help.

 

[Aimee K]

As a massage therapist, I know there are some neuromuscular massage techniques that can alleviate that.

Getting a dental opinion wouldn't hurt either.

 

[DMickey28]

I have a more mild form of TMJ. It pops when I yawn, open my mouth to wide and eat certain foods. Basically I avoid gum and anything chewy. Anything too tough and/or too large I avoid as well. I haven't gone to the Dr. about it b/c I feel I have it under enough control with doing this things and taking Advil when it acts up. I don't really think muscle relaxants would make too much of a difference in my case, so I just try to prevent it from getting worse!

 

[miss missy]

My DH has it. He hit his head on the dask in an accident. His mouth clicks when he eats! He gets headaches too much. But he isn't into surgery. He likes pain But boy that clicking makes me wonder how bad it is. He has been living with it for 25 years so I dont think he'll do anything for it MEN!

 

[arkansas mom]

I have the constant popping. Had it forever. Dentist said it's *insert fancy word here that means malformed jaw bone* and something about ligaments being over stretched and it couldn't really be fixed. He made me some night guards to supposedly help with teeth grinding saying that grinding and clinching makes the ligament thing worse. Has your DB gone the dental route?

 

[twinklebug]

I went to the dentist his summer thinking I had an infected wisdom tooth It hurt so bad and I couldn't open my mouth more than an inch. It turned out to be TMJ. He told me I probably developed it from clenching my teeth together which I tend to do when I'm concentrating. There are night guards he can buy to wear - they're like the dental guards that are worn in sports, or if he's aware of clenching his teeth together he can remind himself to just keep his upper and lower jaws seperated. This is what I've done and the pain has subsided & I can bite into an apple again!

 

[UnderTheMistletoe]

I have TMJ. I was diagnosed when I couldn't fall asleep when night and went into a dentist's office in tears complaining about the pain.

I am surprised that they haven't suggested a "retainer" of sorts. It's not like the orthodontic retainers. It's plastic and fits entirely over (my...) top teeth. I wear it as much as possible. Definitely at night and when I'm working on the computer. One of my big things is that I clench my jaw which only makes things worse. By paying attention to it and noticing when I do it, I can stop. The "retainer" has kept me from getting surgery. However, I do have lower braces on for the second time in my life. The uppers will be going on for the last 6-8 months. It's due in part to the fact that I have a permanant tooth that has never come in and everything is moving around to fill it in, but also becuase of the TMJ/clenching. They wonder, if in some cases, the TMJ is secondary to the incorrect bite.

I would have a second and even third opinion. See if you can get into a dentist's office that "makes things," too. As they seem far more likely to help than your biannual cleaning dentist.

Could someone give her the correct words for the "retainer" and "makes things" if they know...

 

[rcraw45425]

As others have posted, the pain often mimics that of a bad, or abcessed tooth. That was what I thought I had when I sought treatment from my local dentist in '94. We did x rays, they didn't show anything, I then was referred to a neurologist, who thought it was trigeminal neuralgia, painful inflammation of the trigeminal nerve in the face. He wanted to start me on meds for that till DH spoke with the neuro and explained that we were trying to have kids (the meds are real bad news). Went back to the dentist, he did further exams and determined that it was TMJ. It was so bad (I'm a clencher) that I would clench my jaw in tune to the radio! It took two months of wearing the splint 24/7 except to eat and brush, but it did get better. Knock wood, I haven't had a bad flare up in years. I just try to avoid stress (that dentist was big into bio feed back, and it really does work), try not to chew gum or eat chewy food. It is a pain though when I go to the dentist for cleanings, we have to take frequent breaks so I can close. I whole heartedly recommend the splint, it really did help me.

 

[Belle2667]

Many many years ago when I was in Jr High, my jaw would click and sometimes lock out of place if I yawned. It got so bad that it locked out of place and I could only open it far enough to get a straw or french fry in it.

I went to an ortho who made me a retainer (try getting molds done when you can't open your mouth very far!) that fit over the tops of my bottom teeth. They said it was TMJ and that the retainer would help keep my jaw aligned. It did the trick for many years. (Other options were to get all my teeth capped or braces.) I also had to change my diet and remove caffiene and most sugar. (Something about not relaxing the muscles enough.)

When I was then in my early 20s, the clicking returned. I went to an oral surgeon to inquire about the laser surgery they now had available. He suggested removing my wisdom teeth thinking that my teeth would shift enough to keep things aligned. Wala! It worked and I haven't had any problem since. (I'm knocking on wood as I type this!)

I'm sure that there have been many advances in this area, but I'm thankful that mine was "cured". It was also determined that the TMJ was the source of many headaches I had at that time and those too are gone.

 

[Kristina]

Other than muscle relaxant and anti inflammatory medications, applying heat packs to the area on and off can help. If his jaw is popping then he should be avoiding hard to chew foods and eating a soft diet to lessen the popping if at all possible, as the popping may be damaging to the joint. A dental splint if the pain and popping is due to grinding the teeth. Jaw clenching causes both TMJ pain and headaches and there are techniques that can be learned that can sometimes help. A long time ago (late 80's early 90's) I used to work for an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon in Los Angeles. He treated many patients for TMJ and some did have surgery. Most often people were helped and others who had degenerative joints often had to have repeat surgery's and still had pain. If I were to advise your brother I would say that although his Doctor (dentist?) may be correct he should get a second opinion and consult a board certified Oral Surgeon for further advice.

Hope he's feeling better soon !

edited due to spelling error that even Firefox did not catch!

 

[PatsMom]

I did splints of various types for probably about 6 years. I got some relief but was still in pain. I'd definitely find a specialist in TMJ. If the splints give relief, they can help to avoid surgery. I chose the surgery as a last resort - my jaw was just too congenitally malformed for anything else to work. Don't know if all surgery is the same, but mine involved several hours of general anesthesia, re-arranging bones (one later dentist said the X-rays looked like someone dumped a hardware store into my jaw), a night in intensive care, two more days in a regular hospital room and six weeks of my jaw wired shut while the bones healed. All of the scars are inside the mouth. Definitely not something to go into without exhausting all other treatment options first in my opinion. But as a last resort, it sort of worked. As long as I continue to wear my night guard (I'm a tooth grinder) I don't have much pain any more. Good luck!

 

[Poohnatic]

As a massage therapist, I know there are some neuromuscular massage techniques that can alleviate that.

Getting a dental opinion wouldn't hurt either.

I was going to suggest a consult with a massage therapist or another dentist. The surgery is not the best option for everyone.

Believe it or not, there is a very simple reflexology technique that he can try-it works pretty good for me. He should massage the fleshy parts between his thumbs and index fingers for a couple of minutes every day.

If he chews gum, he should stop. Avoid ice whenever possible and no 'stacked' sandwiches. This will help eliminate pain substantially.

I was diagnosed in my early 20's and my dentist strongly advised against surgery, fitting me for a night guard instead. I asked my dentist a couple years ago (dental student, actually) how the surgery had improved and he also was not an advocate for it.

Suzanne

 

[disneytraveler]

i went to a dentist and he made me a jaw guard for my tmj.

 

[Sinderelli]

My jaw popping started when I was 11 years old. I was (incorrectly) told I would outgrow it. Now, at age 32, it is much worse. If I happen to yawn too wide, my jaw locks open. It stays that way for an hour or more. I finally got fitted for a splint about 3 months ago, and that does seem to be helping a bit.

I hate the feeling when my jaw locks open- it seems to do it most when I am really tired. I will not consider surgery unless the pain is unbearable.

 

[DisneyAddict_M]

I've been dealing with it for the past 11 years or so. I've just gotten used to it.

 

[disneymoss]

I'm currently under treatment for TMJ which I have had as long as I can remember. Last November, I sneezed and heard a different kind of pop and went to an Orthodontist for evaluation and x-rays and he told me I dislocated my jaw. BTW the orthodontist I went to specializes in TMJ treatment. My first treatment was an orthotic splint that fits on my bottom jaw which is teaching my jaw to shut properly in place. Now I'm still wearing the splint and have braces on my top teeth with lower ones to come. My bite after the sneeze was soooo off I couldn't eat for like 2 weeks, the orthotic splint is helping tremendously!

Treatment for this is very expensive and half the time it isn't covered by insurance, even if my jaw was dislocated, still considered TMJ. I would seek and Orthodontist Opinion but research on which training he received and specializes in first. Thanks to my orthodontist I no longer hear the popping or grinding of bone and I'm not even half way through treatment.

Good Luck!!

 

[gottaluvPluto]

I had surgery when I was 18 for TMJ. I had TMJ so bad that I had so many problems beside the jaw issue. It is amazing how a jaw can cause problems to other parts of your body. Anyway, I had the surgery and I still have TMJ. The TMJ is not as bad as it was, but I still have the lock jaw, jumping jaw, popping jaw and so forth.

Has your brother tried a chiropractor or physical therapy? THe chiropractor has helped me with the TMJ.

Your brother should grow out of the TMJ in his fifties. If he has surgery he will always have an issue with TMJ.

If you want you can PM me and I will tell you more about the surgery and my TMJ.

Lynne