Well, one of the things that is necessary is a thorough evaluation and diagnosis and this, especially for people with joint problems, we need to determine the extent of the joint problem. We need to determine the location of the problem. We need to determine whether this is a problem inside the capsule or if this is something that is occurring in the muscles outside. The different treatment modalities are there depending upon what the problem is and therefore, individualized to the person. We work in conjunction with physiotherapy, chiropractors, other healthcare professionals because a lot of times, this is a complex problem that doesn’t have just one solution. When we get into the determination of the problem, we also have to determine whether or not this is a successful treatment. Part of it, we will do a trial determination that says we need to stabilize the job—we need to stabilize the joint, we need to improve the patient comfort. This is usually done within a four to six month period after the initial therapy. For those patients that respond to that, they go from being in a situation of pain and discomfort, to people that can actually chew, eat, and smile again. It’s one of those treatments that has a lot of pleasure from our standpoint for those people that are successful and that it sometimes, for those people, is a little frustrating because it can be a complicated problem that requires longer periods of time to treat and more people involved in the process, but if they’re willing to work towards it, we can make a big difference for those people as well. For people that are in pain, this is it. Nobody wants to be in pain, so if you’re experiencing that, I would say the sooner we see it, the better it is. The longer you wait, the more problems that occur, the more complicated it becomes, and also the more damage that may be occurring inside the joint. Earlier is always better than later.
- Minimize headaches & other TMJ symptoms
- Relieve jaw tension by healing your joints
- Protect your smile from teeth grinding
