(Jaw Pain in Cold Weather)
A little known but particularly painful and debilitating condition for the people who suffer from it is known as TMD for short.
Like many people who suffer from food allergies or intolerances this condition can be painful or disabling enough to keep sufferers off work for a day or two and be incredibly uncomfortable.
A close friend is a sufferer and deciding if a form of surgery may be necessary. When there is an onset of the condition her jaw starts by clicking, then becomes ever more painful before bringing on violent headaches.
What the Temporomandibular Joints Are:
The temporomandibular joints (TMJ) are the two joints that connect your lower jaw to your skull. The joints that slide and rotate in front of each ear and consist of the mandible (the lower jaw) and the temporal bone (the side and base of the skull). These TMJ’s are among the most complex joints in the body.
The TMJ joints, along with several face muscles, they allow the mandible to move up and down, side to side, and forward and back. When the mandible and the joints are properly aligned, smooth muscle actions, such as chewing, talking, yawning, and swallowing, can take place. When these structures (muscles, ligaments, disk, jawbone, temporal bone) are unaligned, nor synchronized in movement, problems often occur.
Advice
The UK NHS website states that it is not usually serious and can get better on its own.
But to the sufferer that is not being extremely helpful. Like so many allergy sufferers, this is a condition that doctors ought to treat with more sympathy.
The only genuine advice given by this professional helpline is to:
- eat soft food, like pasta, omelettes, and soup!
- take paracetamol or ibuprofen!
- hold ice packs or heat packs to the jaw, whichever feels better.
- massage the painful jaw muscles.
- try to find ways to relax.
- do not chew gum or pen tops.
- do not bite food with your front teeth.
- do not yawn too wide.
- do not bite your nails.
- do not clench your teeth – aside from when eating, your teeth should be apart.
- do not rest your chin on your hand.
If recommended to be seen by your GP when the condition is exceedingly bad and all they can do is act on those above bullet points is it any wonder that people are driven to seek out other more extreme solutions like surgery purely out of desperation.
We know that the medical community can’t get to the bottom of everything, especially as new conditions due to modern society living appear. My friend is in an air-conditioned office daily in one of New York’s high-rise blocks and often the temperature control of the office is beyond her control. She is constantly going outside that environment to a warmer restroom for pain relief.
In many cases, the actual cause of this disorder may not be clear. Sometimes the main cause is excessive strain on the jaw joints and the muscle group that controls chewing, swallowing, and speech.
This strain may be a result of bruxism. This is the habitual, involuntary clenching or grinding of the teeth. But trauma to the jaw, the head, or the neck may cause TMD. Arthritis and displacement of the jaw joint disks can also cause TMD pain.
Recent research has identified clinical, psychological, sensory, genetic, and nervous system factors that may put a person at higher risk of developing chronic TMD.
