Diseases associated with the temporomandibular joint are quite common and take second place after diseases such as periodontal disease and caries. Almost 50% of people all over the world face these diseases, but few seek medical help, although the consequences can be serious in the future.
The temporomandibular joint plays an important role, as it is used for chewing, talking and even yawning.
The joint is in front of the ear and consists of the temporal bone and lower jaw. Tendons and muscles serve to fasten two jaws together, it is they that allow you to open and close your mouth. If there are no deviations, then the person will not feel any discomfort, worst of all, when there are various diseases associated with the temporomandibular joint.
Causes of Joint Diseases
Experts cannot name the exact causes of these diseases, but there are a number of the most common:
- Dysfunction of the temporomandibular joint can occur due to severe stress in a person when there is an overstrain or a strong tooth compression.
- An equally common cause is trauma to the jaw, the consequences of a severe bruise and fracture of the skull bones.
- Endocrine and infectious diseases.
- Strong physical activity. Especially those that affect the head and neck.
- Bad habits, for example, at risk are people who bite their nails or are used to holding the phone incorrectly, pressing it on the cheek.
- Particularly complex are diseases of the temporomandibular joint associated with arthritis or polyarthritis.
A person can tolerate diseases easily, and can feel severe pain, and the ailment can occur in a chronic or acute form, but with the slightest manifestation it is necessary to consult a specialist.
Symptoms
As soon as the first symptoms appear, it is worth taking appropriate measures. The fact is that diseases can interfere with a person’s work, overall well-being worsens significantly. If inflammation is not treated, then serious complications can develop over time, and then the treatment will be longer. It is also important to keep in mind that any disease can occur, both in chronic and acute form, so the symptoms will be different. In the acute stage of the disease, a person will have the following symptoms:
- Headache, spasms of the muscles of the face, a feeling of tension and stiffness of the jaw.
- When the jaw moves, you can hear a loud rattle and crunch, especially unpleasant sounds are heard at night, during sleep, when a person does not control himself.
- Pain and ringing appear in the ears.
- Lymph nodes located under the jaw may enlarge.
- Sometimes dizziness appears and a person may faint.
In the acute form, diseases such as dislocation of the temporomandibular joint, arthrosis, arthritis and the occurrence of neoplasms can occur. In a chronic form, the disease passes, as a rule, after diseases that were somehow related to dental problems. In this case, the symptoms will be as follows:
- Redness and swelling appears in the joint area.
- There is tinnitus.
- There are problems with opening the jaw.
- During the movement of the jaw, you can notice a sharp pain, which gives not only to the ears, but also to the back of the head.
- Body temperature rises.
In any case, you should not endure, you should immediately seek help from a specialist so as not to aggravate your further condition.
Types of diseases
The following diseases of the temporomandibular joint are often found:
- Dislocation - is the result of a violation of the location of the jaws and muscles. The patient will complain of a click when opening his mouth and sharp pain.
- Arthritis of the temporomandibular joint is accompanied by severe pain and limited movement of the jaw, in addition, during an exacerbation of the disease, the patient rises in body temperature and redness appears at the site of the joint. If treatment is not started, then after some time the joint will become deformed.
- No less insidious disease is arthrosis. The disease occurs after serious injuries or even with inflammatory processes. When opening the mouth, a zigzag motion of the lower jaw can be noted .
- Ankylosis occurs due to an infectious disease. In this case, the patient can only slightly open his mouth, because the movements of the jaws are limited. In childhood, purulent ankylosis may appear, because of this, a pronounced asymmetry occurs on the face, an incorrect bite is formed. If you do not take any action for treatment, a person may completely lose the ability to move his jaw.
- Dysfunction of the temporomandibular joint is characterized by pain in the ear area, which only increases during chewing. If the disease is not treated, then it gradually turns into a new disease called arthrosis.
Any of these diseases can not be ignored, since the consequences can be sad.
Diagnostics
To determine exactly what disease a person has, it is necessary to seek the help of a qualified doctor who can prescribe a diagnosis. The fact is that focusing only on signs, it is impossible to find out exactly what disease a person cares about. Often, the symptoms of temporomandibular joint pathologies are similar to those of dental diseases, with some ENT problems, and gum disease.
The attending physician may also involve other specialists, such as a neurologist or dentist, for examination. Sometimes therapy is developed in conjunction with these doctors.
The patient will definitely need to do an x-ray. In especially difficult cases, MRI is prescribed. As soon as the cause is found, the doctor will prescribe a treatment aimed at eliminating the symptoms so as not to aggravate the general condition of his patient.
Treatment methods
If the temporomandibular joint hurts, treatment should be prescribed by a specialist after a thorough examination. Typically, it is as follows:
- The patient must necessarily observe the rest regimen. A person can only eat soft food, which does not require any chewing or opening his mouth wide.
- You can apply compresses that will reduce pain. It is desirable that it be warm, this will relieve tension in the muscles and reduce cramps.
- Treatment is impossible without taking medications, but only those medications prescribed by the doctor should be used.
- If there are problems with a bite, then first of all they eliminate the strong compression of the teeth, in which case dentures are inserted in a place where there are no teeth or acrylic devices are used.
- In especially difficult cases, an operation is performed.
It is impossible to say exactly how long the treatment will last, since any inflammation of the temporomandibular joint requires special attention. Sometimes a person can be completely cured in a month, and sometimes it can take several years to recover. But every person who has disturbing symptoms must definitely remember that any disease can be quickly cured at the initial stage, and not when the disease has become chronic.
Drug and surgical treatment
As soon as the doctor was able to eliminate the main symptoms, the temporomandibular joint is subjected to targeted treatment. To eliminate pain and relieve inflammation, a specialist can prescribe anesthetic or novocaine blockade. In no case should you take analgesics yourself, for each patient they are selected individually. When purulent arthritis is diagnosed in a sick person, antibiotics must be prescribed, but before that, the doctor must conduct a sensitivity test. With the inflammatory process and edema, ointments and gels on bee venom are perfectly able to cope. In this case, you can apply compresses with them.
It is important to remember that even a regular compress without the recommendation of a doctor can lead to serious complications. If a person tries to cure himself without diagnosis, then a warm compress, for example, with purulent arthritis, can only provoke the growth of bacteria.
If the temporomandibular joint cannot be cured by medication, then the doctor can decide on surgery.
Folk methods
Traditional medicine offers many ways to treat the temporomandibular joint. All methods are aimed at removing unpleasant symptoms, but no more than that, therefore, without the help of a doctor, a final recovery cannot be achieved. In this case, it is most correct to use alternative methods, as an addition to the main drug treatment, but consult with your doctor first.
As a rule, many patients treat arthrosis of the temporomandibular joint using ointments prepared at home based on honey and various herbs, but it must be understood that this method will not make it possible to cure the disease itself, most likely, it will be possible to eliminate the symptoms for a while which in a month will become aggravated with renewed vigor. The use of medications and physiotherapeutic procedures is considered effective, with a complex form, surgical correction is required. When the diagnosis is “dysfunction of the temporomandibular joint”, the treatment is complex. Several doctors must take part in the examination and treatment of the patient. First of all, a neuropathologist, dentist and facial surgeon. Consultation of a psychotherapist is sometimes required if the cause of the disease lies in severe stress.
How to provide first aid
The main feature of any disease is that a person experiences severe pain. As soon as intense pain appears, it is possible to alleviate the condition of a person who has a temporomandibular joint pain in this way:
- First of all, a warm compress is applied to the sore spot. It will relieve muscle spasm and improve chewing function. You can attach a heating pad with warm water, ten minutes is enough to improve the condition.
- Cold can also be used to reduce pain. Ice can be kept for fifteen minutes, and after an hour, repeat the procedure.
- If it is not possible to immediately contact a specialist, then you can use the following drugs to relieve inflammation, such as Ibuprofen, Aspirin.
The first aid provided can only alleviate the condition, but in no case can it be a method of treatment.
Complications of diseases of the lower temporomandibular joint
If the temporomandibular joint is inflamed, treatment should be prescribed as soon as possible, since the consequences can be much more serious than it seems. It is important to remember that the joint consists of cartilage and connective tissue, and when suppuration begins in this area, the cartilage begins to collapse. Only a surgeon can remove pus, but if a person does not see a doctor, then the disease begins to spread to other nearby tissues.
If there is no suppuration, ankylosis can begin, the joint becomes motionless, and the face of a sick person is deformed. Bone ankylosis should not be allowed to develop, in which case the joint tissue begins to ossify, and the patient forever loses the ability to move the lower jaw. Any person who has encountered diseases that affect the temporomandibular joint should clearly understand that doing without the help of a doctor will not work. Only a specialist can prescribe therapeutic agents and even laser therapy.
Prevention
Prevention is required when a person has already once experienced an inflammation of the joint, and does not want this to happen again in the future. To prevent the inflammatory process and other diseases of the temporomandibular joint, all measures should be taken in order to exclude relapse:
- First of all, a person is obliged to evenly distribute the load on the incisors and lateral teeth. You can do this this way: bite off food particles with the front ones, and use the rear ones exclusively for chewing it.
- Chewing food should be both right and left, so as not to strain only one side of the teeth.
- If there is a malocclusion, you must seek the help of a doctor who can correct it or at least correct it. It is important to remember that malocclusion is the right way to develop disease.
- When inflammation of the joint has already taken place, the diet must be reviewed and excluded from eating solid foods, for example, you can not eat crackers, hard meat that is difficult to chew, and nuts.
At first glance, such simple preventive measures will help to avoid many problems, so you should pay special attention to them and listen to the recommendations of your doctor.