TMD/Migraine
TMD/MIGRAINE refers to multitude of disorders associated with the jaw muscles and the temporomandibular joints, which are the ball and socket hinges on both sides of the head that connect the lower jaw, or the mandible, to the temporal bone of the skull and the associated headaches patients suffer from. All headaches start in the part of the brain called the trigeminocervical nucleus that receives most of its signals from the nerves of the head and neck. Therefore, any imbalance in a patient’s bite and or temporomandibular joint that causes facial muscles to become sore will trigger TMD/MIGRAINE. It is estimated that as many as 105 million Americans suffer from TMD/MIGRANE, which represents an astonishing 35% of the U.S. population. TMD/MIGRANE affects four times as many women as men and is most prevalent for patients in their thirties, forties and fifties.
The most common TMD/MIGRANE complaint is migraine or other headache in association with jaw, head, neck and or shoulder pain. Another of the most common symptoms of TMD/MIGRAINE is a dull aching pain around the patient’s ear that often radiates to the neck, shoulders and back. There is often tenderness of the jaw muscles, headaches, clicking or popping sounds in the temporomandibular joint itself, limited opening of the mouth, facial pain and ringing in the ears that is associated with a feeling that closely resembles being under water or up in the mountains. Even though the majority of TMD/MIGRANES have a variety of causes they all have one thing in common and that is the dysfunction of the temporomandibular joint. The two most common attributes of migraine headaches are tenderness in the muscles of the jaw, heads, neck, face and back. These hot spots in the muscles are referred to as trigger points and create pain wind up loops that cause migraine headaches, referral pain patterns and dental problems such as clenching, grinding, uneven bite and excessive wearing of the a patient’s teeth. Chronic stimulation for these wind up loops causes hypersensitivity to pain reducing the patient’s pain threshold and pain tolerance.
TMD/MIGRAINE disorders are most commonly the result of the chewing muscles, the teeth and the temporomandibular joint not working together properly as an integrated unit. Some of the most common causes are trauma, whiplash, stress, grinding, clenching, dental malocclusions, missing teeth, sore teeth, muscle abuse and braces. In today’s society the most common form of muscle abuse is sitting in front of a computer for hours on end every day.
TMD/MIGRAINE can become a chronic problem often associated with some permanent damage form trauma to the head, neck, back temporomandibular joint, or teeth. The good news is that even in the worst case the symptoms can be minimized or even eliminated through proper professional care and home care. The object of proper treatment is to gently and naturally bring the head, neck, jaw and occlusion or bite back into neuromuscular alignment. The head literally teeters on top of the cervical spine with its center of gravity anterior (forward) to the spine and is tethered to the body by the muscles of the joint system. Functional and resting head posture is dependent upon the proper tension in these muscles so it follows that jaw movements must also be intimately associated forming an integrated unit. Head posture, neck posture, jaw muscles and teeth are all intimately related and a change in one necessarily affects the others. Because of the dynamic relationship between head and neck posture, jaw position and dental occlusion and the ultimate disturbance that is seen as TMD/MIGRANE disorder, TMJ dysfunction, headache, neck and back pain it becomes necessary to provide appropriate treatment for optimum results. We are able to provide comprehensive treatment in our office as well as offer instruction of simple and effective techniques for stress relief in these areas. Our goal is to allow our patients to be paint free and thereby improve the quality of their life. TMD/MIGRANE therapy consists of the following three treatment components:
1. BALANCE the MUSCLES and JOINTS of the JAW, HEAD, NECK and BACK.
2. BALANCE the BITE/OCCULSION
3. BALANCE STRESS and HOME CARE.
