Caring for your smile means much more than brushing your teeth daily. In fact, your care routine should be considered well-rounded or involving various aspects. After all, your smile is comprised of many structures such as your gums, roots, cheeks, lips, and more, and each one of these factors must be cared for if you are aiming to maintain a healthy smile for life. In today’s blog, your Leawood, KS dentist explains how circumstances such as grinding your teeth can inevitably lead to significant complications if treatment is not sought.
Why Grinding is an Issue
Have you ever woken up with a sore or tense jaw? If so, chances are you have experience bruxism. Indeed, bruxism is the name given to chronic teeth-grinding, and it is not a phenomenon to be taken lightly. When a person experiences this phenomenon, what is happening is that he or she is clenching the teeth together tightly as the lower jaw moves from side to side.
While waking with a sore jaw from this phenomenon once or twice in your life is not that big of a deal, you should begin to worry if it occurs more frequently. You see, this is not a normal function, and it could actually cause a number of major concerns to develop. For instance, the longer you grind your structures, the more they become worn down over time. This not only impacts your structural integrity, but it increases your chances of developing a dangerous jaw dysfunction. To learn more about this process and what to expect, reach out to our team today.
Symptoms and Side-Effects
As you can imagine, grinding your structures is certainly not good for them. In fact, you may begin to experience a number of noticeable side effects. These can include sensitive structures, increased chance of bacterial infection, and even jaw misalignment.
Jaw misalignment often takes the form of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder, which occurs when the lower mandible becomes misaligned with one or both of the temporomandibular joints. Indeed, individuals who experience this phenomenon often endure a popping or clicking sensation as the jaw attempts to realign correctly.
Another concern that arises from TMJ disorder is the level of tissue damage you may endure. Because your jaw is in the wrong position but attempts to correct it on its own, you run the risk of significant damage and functional complications.
Benefits of Sling Therapy
While TMJ disorder is certainly not an enjoyable experience, all hope is not lost. With the help of splint therapy, our team can carefully help your jaw bone back into place with gradual, guided treatment.
Learn More Today
Contact Dreem Dentistry in Leawood, KS by calling 913-681-5500 to schedule your next appointment with our team, or to learn more about the dangers of teeth-grinding.
