Pain Throughout the Body Caused by TMJ

Have you ever been looking for “causes of jaw pain” online? How about TMJ discomfort, popping in the jaw, pain when chewing, or any other jaw-related discomfort or difficulty? About 15% of adults have temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders, so you’re not alone (TMD).

The answer is unquestionably yes if you’re asking whether TMJ pain can affect other parts of your body. There are certainly serious issues that untreated TMD can cause, in addition to headaches and dental pain. 

Your jawbone and skull converge at your TMJ. It can function without issues for a lifetime if it is properly aligned, although this isn’t always the case. The way your jaw fits into your skull might alter due to changes in your bite, an injury, arthritis, a poor bite, or any number of other problems. When this happens, your TMJ isn’t sitting correctly.

Disorders of the jaw muscles, temporomandibular joints, and nerves are known as temporomandibular disorders (TMD), which are linked to persistent facial pain. Temporomandibular disorder can be caused by any issue that hinders the intricate network of muscles, bones, and joints from functioning in unison.

The Following Are the Classifications for TMD Provided by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research:

Myofascial discomfort TMD most frequently manifests in this way. The muscles that control the function of the jaw, neck, and shoulder experience discomfort or pain as a result.

Joint internal misalignment. This refers to a fractured condyle, dislocated jaw, or displaced disk (the cartilage cushion between the jaw bone and the skull) (the rounded end of the jaw bone that articulates with the temporal skull bone).

joint illness with degeneration. The jaw joint may experience rheumatoid or osteoarthritic arthritis.

The precise cause of TMJ pain may not always be known. Excessive stress on the jaw joints and the muscles that regulate eating, swallowing, and speaking might occasionally be the primary cause. This tension could be the result of bruxism. This is the uncontrollable, repetitive clenching or grinding of the teeth. TMD, however, can result from neck, head, or jaw trauma. TMD pain may also be brought on by arthritis and disk displacement in the jaw joint. Other times, the discomfort of TMD may be exacerbated or overlap with that of another painful medical condition, such as fibromyalgia or irritable bowel syndrome.

Each of these circumstances is possible to have concurrently.

When your jaw joint is restricted from moving as it would naturally, it becomes quite uncomfortable. Your face, neck, and back experience waves of excruciating pain as it pops, clicks, and locks. Untreated TMJ gets may get worse the more it goes neglected.

Referred pain is a condition when an issue in one area of the body is making another area of the body problematic. For instance, if you have a damaged foot, you could not be walking properly, which could result in hip and back pain.

The same is true for your jaw; if it isn’t allowed to work properly, you WILL experience pain elsewhere in your body. The location, timing, and degree of the pain will vary from person to person, but it will ultimately happen!

Think of each muscle in your body as a puzzle piece that depends on all of its neighbors to function properly rather than as a standalone component. The muscles surrounding a certain body part, such as your jaw joint, become jumbled up when it experiences a problem. They are compelled to adjust by behaving erratically, which in turn compels other muscles to alter their activity.

Before you realize it, your jaw, temples, neck, and back are all hurting because your jaw joint isn’t functioning properly. The extent and intensity of your pain may fluctuate along with your TMD symptoms, but the stiffness and pain are unbearable!

There are numerous nerves close to all those facial muscles that surround the TMJ. Your muscles may become tense or uncomfortable, and this can lead to difficulties with your nerves as well as your jaw’s alignment. Numerous TMD patients have described experiencing tingling and numbness in their arms, chest, neck, and face as a result of their jaws, which can be incredibly alarming.

Other bodily parts are put under a lot of stress and fatigue due to stiff, aching muscles. Because of the way your jaw is tugging on the muscles in your neck and face, this strain on your back and neck may cause issues with your posture.

Your jaw joint can cause bad posture, ongoing backaches, and a strained neck over time. It’s amazing how much a seemingly minor issue can affect, but this just goes to show how intricately linked all of the body’s parts are!

The most frequent problem you might associate with your TMJ is forward head posture. There is no way around this; every one with TMJ has a forward-leaning head posture. It results in a postural twist because one shoulder/hip is higher and farther forward.

Muscle attachments to the jaw are all shortened and have an incorrect range of motion when the lower jaw is not placed correctly. That much muscular dysfunction daily affects the jaw, neck, back, chest, etc. Your ability to fully breathe via your diaphragm is limited, which results in a 30% reduction in the amount of oxygen you take in.

A Set of Curves Make up Your Body Posture:

• The cervical curvature in the neck
• Thoracic-lumbar curve
• Likewise the sacral curvature.

In functional (normal) muscle, these curves serve as “springs” to absorb shock, and the discs and vertebrae support the body’s right posture.

The spine becomes pressure-point-filled and ceases to function as a spring when the head is positioned forward, eventually resulting in painful symptoms. In an effort to maintain balance and support the weight of your head if a portion of your spine is out of position, the remainder of it will curve in that direction.

Dr. Insolera of the TMJ and Sleep Center will examine over 40 muscles during your new patient evaluation to look for latent trigger points in the head and neck, which are painful muscles caused by TMJ/forward head posture.

The TM Joints may be the source of pain that spreads to the face. Referred muscular discomfort frequently manifests as pressure or pain behind the eyes and on one side of the head. Since the TM Joints and middle ear are closely related, the pressure causes ear pain, which can even cause a feeling of fluid in the ears.

These symptoms will go away due to significantly better muscle performance when biting and jaw posture is altered by muscle measurement 5,000 times each day.

The beginning of TMJ condition treatment is the location of the discomfort.

We can treat the pain once we understand what’s triggering it. Come into our office for TMJ treatment Naperville, we’ll help to diagnose and treat your condition.

 In addition to in-office evaluations, diagnostic methods include MRI, CT scans, and Panorex (an x-ray that surrounds the jaws).

A mix of anti-inflammatory and painkilling drugs (such as NSAIDs) and non-medical methods can be used to treat many milder cases of TMJ discomfort.

Many of these people can benefit from night guards, cold or heat therapy, and relaxation techniques. Sometimes, the problem might be as straightforward as stress-producing jaw clenching or tooth grinding.

Additionally, those who experience uncommon acute TMJ dislocations that self-correct are not at risk. Even so, these occurrences should be examined by a primary care physician as they may be signs of future problems. TMJ pain treatment Illinois, our TMJ doctor will help you find suitable treatment options.

Forward head pains that get worse with time are the first sign of TMJ issues. Lower back, hips, and knee pain might result from failing to pay attention to the “40” lb. head position.

As the patient becomes older and their muscles weaken, they may also experience balance issues, which makes them more prone to falling. In addition, swallowing and sleeping issues brought on by misaligned jaw and muscles are frequently observed.