Jaw Joint Problems Options

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Jaw Joint Problems

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OCTOBER 15, 2007 07:10


Jaw joint disorders are usually attributed to stress, bad habits, and excessive use of jaw joints.

One of the common causes of jaw joint disorder is teeth grinding and clenching, which a person may do when feeing anxious or stressed. When teeth clenching becomes a habit, it can lead to chronic inflammation of the muscles around the joint or the dislocation of the jaw joint. Grinding one’s teeth at night when a person is sleeping can result in jaw joint problems as well.


Bad habits can also cause problems affecting the jaw joint. Those who use computers for work for a long time may develop such problems. Sitting at a desk while resting one’s chin on one’s hand or stretching out one’s neck can increase pressure on the ligaments and muscles surrounding the jaw, leading to inflammation. The prevalence of jaw joint disorders are frequently reported among women and young adolescents.


According to a survey of 317 patients with jaw joint problems conducted by dentistry professor Kim Young-kyun at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, the number of female patients (242) was 3.2 times larger than that of male patients (75). Among age cohorts, the number of people under 40 was 233, or 73.5 percent. The number of those who were under 25 was 120, or 37.8 percent.


Experts say that women have a higher prevalence of jaw joint disorder because they tend to respond quicker when problems arise compared with males, or they are more sensitive to the effects of chronic stress.


Such problems are said to be on the rise among young adults in their teens and twenties and deemed to be closely linked to exam- and employment-related stress. Some experts say that men or elderly people are not likely visit hospitals because they tend to be slow to respond to pain they suffer.


The most common symptoms include jaw joint clicking - this may make a sound and a patient may feel pain when opening his or her mouth. If such symptoms become worse, it may lead to pain in and around the ear, cheekbone, or neck. It may also increase muscle tension around the jaw joint, resulting in headaches.

Most jaw joint symptoms disappear after a while when avoiding abruptly opening one’s mouth and reducing stress. Combining drug treatment with physical therapy can ease the symptoms.


However, if problems occur with the jaw joint disc due to the negligence of such problems, a jaw joint disc implant may be necessary. The implant involves replacing an irreparable jaw joint disc with cartilage from other parts of the body.


It`s important to break bad habits to ease symptoms. Experts point out patients should break their bad habits and avoid activities that adversely affect the jaw joint. They advise not to rest one’s chin on one’s hand, and straighten the back in order not to put pressure on the jaw muscle. Stretching every 30 minutes to one hour is also recommended.


Patients with jaw joint problems should avoid chewing gum. The jaw joint, one of the joints that are most frequently used in the human body, can be damaged by the continuous chewing of gum. It is recommended for a patient with a jaw problem to chew gum for five minutes maximum per day.


It is also wise for the patients to avoid hard and tough foods, such as dried squid, and beans boiled in soy. Also, it is recommended to avoid chewing food on one side and sleeping on one side only. Patients should be careful not to open their mouths too wide, or clenching their teeth too hard.


Patients should not click their jaw joints when their jaws make sounds. If breaking bad habits turns out to be difficult, a dentist may suggest that a patient wear a mouth splint or mouthguard. These devices used to be used by athletics, but are now commonly used in dentistry to prevent patients from grinding their teeth.


(Advice: Kim young-kyun, a dentistry professor at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital; Lee Bu-Kyu, a dentistry professor at Asan Medical Center in Seoul.)

颞下颌关节紊乱综合症是由不良姿势引起的代表性疾患



OCTOBER 15, 2007 07:10
金轩轾 ( nuk@donga.com)


颞下颌关节紊乱综合症是因为压力和不良姿势或过于是用下巴而引起的疾病。

人一旦受到压力，就会给下巴部位一些压力或咬牙。咬牙成了习惯的话，下巴关节周围的肌肉会时刻处于紧张状态，最后会引起一些疾病。据说睡觉时磨牙也对下巴关节不利。


不良姿势也会引起颞下颌关节紊乱综合症。大部分用计算机工作的人都会有下巴关节障碍。

长时间用手顶住下巴或长时间坐在计算机前面会给下巴关节施加压力，也会有发炎的症状。


一般颞下颌关节紊乱综合症的患者多为女性或青状年。

首尔大医院的牙科教授们对317名颞下颌关节紊乱综合症的患者进行了调查，调查显示女性（242名）比男性（75名）多3.2倍。根据年龄的话，40岁以下的患者占73.5%，而且25岁以下的患者占37.8%。

专家显示，女性障碍患者比男性多的原因是女性的反应比较快而且受到压力的程度比男性高。

10，20多岁青年人患颞下颌关节紊乱综合症，可能是与他们的入学压力及就业压力相关。

还有些人表明，男性或到了一定的年龄人们对痛症的反应变迟钝，而且觉得自己不对劲也不会轻易到医院看病。


颞下颌关节紊乱综合症的主要症状是耳朵前面的关节发出声音或有一点疼痛，而且很难张嘴。如果严重的话耳朵和牙齿会疼起来，还有脖子和肩膀部位也能感觉到疼痛。严重的话还能导致头晕的症状。


因此若避免突然张嘴或减少压力的来源的话，一段时间后，颞下颌关节紊乱综合症就自然痊愈了。也许找牙科进行药物治疗和物理治疗，效果会更好。

不过如果上下巴连接的部位如果出现了问题，就应立即校正。

使用校正安全设施或严重时，就得割下其它地方的软骨来进行手术后才能痊愈。


颞下颌关节紊乱综合症是代表性的生活习惯型疾患。

专家指出，患者自己更改不良习惯或避免对下巴关节不利的行为，对颞下颌关节紊乱综合症的治疗非常有效。

不要用手顶住下巴，或者坐着的时候尽量直腰，避免对下巴施加压力。还有每隔30分钟或1个小时要做一些运动。

患者要避免嚼泡泡糖。因此如果你是颞下颌关节紊乱综合症患者，泡泡糖只嚼5分钟就足够了。

也不要吃鱿鱼或花生等硬或不容易嚼的食品。总用一面的牙齿吃东西或只向着一面睡觉习惯也要改一下。

吃东西的时候，不要为了一口吃完而张大嘴，也不要咬牙。

若下巴有奇怪的声音的话，不要确认无数次。


如果你自己很难改掉这些习惯，就要接受校正安全设施的帮助。以前这些设施只用于运动选手们，但现在也用于牙齿用防止方面。

（由金永军首尔大医院牙科教授， 李福奎首尔峨山中央医院牙科教授提供帮助）