Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) is a frustrating condition marked by seemingly unrelated symptoms that stem from one source cause. Most of the time, TMD sufferers experience jaw popping, jaw pain, chewing difficulties, facial tenderness, severe headaches and/or tinnitus. That said, a new study suggests that TMD sufferers may also demonstrate a tell-tale sign of the condition when they chew their food.
Assessing Masticatory Function
A recent study out of the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, found that people who suffer from temporomandibular joint disorder tend to chew on one specific side of their mouths. To reach their findings, the researchers studied the masticatory function of 21 subjects who suffered from TMD. While consuming almonds, 16 of the 20 participants chewed exclusively on the affected side of their mouths.
Do You Have TMD?
While the aforementioned research may offer some new interesting insights into how our bodies naturally respond to temporomandibular joint problems, it doesn’t necessarily offer much guidance to people who suffer from the debilitating disorder; after all, people may choose to chew on one side of their mouths for a variety of reasons, including cavities, tooth sensitivity and more. That said, when this habit is coupled with other telling symptoms; there’s good reason to suspect a problem.
A Professional Assessment
If you’re suffering from jaw popping, jaw pain, chewing difficulties, facial tenderness, severe headaches and/or tinnitus, you could have temporomandibular joint disorder. To find out for sure, contact Dr. Berry to get a professional evaluation. If he determines that your debilitating symptoms are a product of TMD, Dr. Berry can provide an effective treatment that will permanently cure temporomandibular joint disorder, allowing you to live a richer, more fulfilling life, free from the trying symptoms associated with this difficult, unrelenting disorder.
Don’t continue to live under a dark cloud marked by pain and chewing difficulties. Please call (303) 691-0267 at the TMJ Therapy & Sleep Center of Colorado in Denver today.
