Can Trauma to the Jaw Joint Cause TMJ?
The answer is yes, a blow to your jaw cause can exacerbate TMJ problems and also damage the joint. Trauma to the jaw joint such as a strike or in a prolonged or sustained open position (third molar extractions, root canal treatment..etc) can cause TMJ pain. In this type of situation the damage is usually to the ligaments and capsule in the joint. The distension of these ligaments is what often causes the pain.
Ligaments also have unidirectional movement, meaning that they only move in one direction, so you can imagaine how a strike can traumatize this joint in this manner.
Many patients who come in for these issues are looking for something to give them quick relief. Unfortunately, it is like damaging your knee joint or elbow, the pain takes time to heal. The problem is that we need to eat,speak, and swallow.
The use of a temporary mouth appliance is often useful in allowing healing to occur faster along with the use of low frequency TENS (ULFTENS).
Please note every case is different and treated accordingly. In many cases taking a 3D Scan or CBCT scan of the joint is warranted to ascertain that there are no fractures.
If you have questions about TMJ treatment Houston, Texas or TMJ Pain Houston, Texas please call our office, Ronald W. Konig DDS, FAGD, LVIF 713-668-2289
This entry was posted on Monday, January 16th, 2012 at 6:21 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
