TMJ Facial Pain - How TMJ Can Cause Your Entire Face To Hurt

TMJ refers to Temporo-Mandibular Joint or the jaw joint. Disorders that arise from an imbalance in the delicate working between the joint that connects the jaw and skull along with the muscles that move the jaw, as well as disorders of the nervous system associated with these muscles and joints are referred to as Temporo-Mandibular Joint Disorder or TMJ disorder. One of the most common symptoms of TMJ disorder you are likely to experience is facial pain. There are many reasons that can cause facial pain along with jaw pain.

TMJ Muscle Pain

TMJ facial pain is mostly muscular in nature. This is because when a person gets a TMJ disorder, the facial muscles that help with the working of the jaw joint become especially strained. When we eat, our upper and lower jaw have to come together to chew the food. TMJ makes the bite unstable, because the jaws do not remain firmly aligned. This results in additional strain for the muscles around the jaws, causing TMJ facial pain. Additionally, one of the common symptoms of TMJ includes clenching or grinding of teeth. This leads to excessive strain on the muscles of the facial area, leading to muscle tenderness and pain.

TMJ Muscle Spasm

When the TMJ disorder is severe, the damage to the muscles around the jaw also increases in severity. The muscles stiffen because of the strain and the stiffness leads to constriction of blood vessels in the muscles. This prevents from blood flowing in and out of muscles properly, leading to further wear and tear to the facial muscle. There is increased tissue damage and this leads to TMJ facial pain. TMJ facial pain is caused by muscle tenderness as well as stiffness. In severe cases, the muscles in the facial area also spasm and this leads to additional TMJ facial pain.

Treatment

TMJ Chiropractic Treatments differ from case to case. This is because teeth, jaw joints and muscles are all involved and their condition is likely to vary from person to person. However, in the case of facial pain, the treatment usually includes painkillers and a prescription for a muscle relaxant. If the treatment for the TMJ disorder includes use of temporary appliance known as an orthotic, or “splint”, the facial muscles could suffer from minor stiffness because of its presence. However, the use of painkillers and muscle relaxants can bring relief to this minor discomfort.

Therapy

The best forms of treatment for TMJ facial pain are exercises prescribed for TMJ disorders. These exercises include exercises for jaw muscle relaxation exercises and jaw deviation correction exercises among others. Doing these exercises on a regular basis will help relieve the strain on the muscles and help remove the stiffness. Physical therapy does not have immediate effect, but needs to be carried out every day for effective results. This therapy is not to be used as a form of pain relief, but as part of the rehabilitation procedure of an effective TMJ disorder treatment.