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Treatment
of TMJ Syndrome
Ross Hauser, M.D.
A commonly forgotten
area in regards to
headache and
neck pain is the temporomandibular joint. The
temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is the physical connection where the jaw meets the
skull. The
TMJ is needed to keep the jaw in proper alignment, especially when
talking and eating. A painful and clicking TMJ is called Temporomandibular Joint
Syndrome (TMJS). TMJS symptoms are very similar to those of
Barre-Lieou
Syndrome. The symptoms, such as dizziness and vertigo, that physicians ascribe
to the TMJS, may actually be due to Barre-Lieou Syndrome.
It is well-known that
there is a relationship between head posture and jaw position.
This can easily be shown by a person putting the head in proper alignment. This
position will be comfortable if the lower jaw is back. If the lower jaw is
forced forward while the neck and head are in the position, tension is felt in
the hack of the neck.
Typically in TMJS the lower jaw
(mandible) is extended forward. A head forward posture exaggerates the problem.
This forward mandible aggravates the
cervical
ligament laxity which increases
the neck pain. Again an endless cycle of pain and disability is created in the
neck, head, and face region.
Prolotherapy injections to strengthen both the
cervical vertebrae and the temporomandibular joint will solve this problem.
Eventually the mandible moves
forward to the extent that it will stretch the lateral TMJ ligament and produce
pain. Once the lateral TMJ ligament becomes lax the joint will click. It is
important to note that clicking in any joint is an indication of
ligament laxity
of that joint. Joint clicking is never normal or a good sign. Joint clicking,
whether it is in the TMJ, knee, neck, or lower back is always abnormal. It is a
sign that the bones are beginning to rub against each other. The body's
compensatory mechanism for such a situation is to tighten muscles and to grow
more bone. The end result will be degeneration,
arthritis, and stiffness in that
joint. Prolotherapy can stop this process. Prolotherapy will stop a joint from
clicking and stop the arthritic process from continuing.
Another reason why a patient may
have a lax TMJ ligament is a person's
sleeping position. For example, if a
patient sleeps with his or her head turned to the right, the TMJ on the left
side wilt be continually stretched throughout the night. Over many decades,
continually sleeping in this manner, puts the left TMJ at risk for TMJ ligament
laxity. The person with a TMJ problem is advised to
sleep with the head turned
to the side of the problematic TMJ.
The worst case of TMJS to come into
the office was a man we'll call T.W. T.W. 's jaw popped so loud that the
action of opening his mouth could be heard in the other room. The first
Prolotherapy session to his TMJ caused a 60 percent reduction in the clicking of
his jaw. After the second treatment, the clicking was eliminated completely.
T.W.
told me his dentist was amazed. Most dentists and oral surgeons believe TMJ
Syndrome is permanent and the best hope is for temporary symptom relief. I can
verify in my own practice that TMJ Syndrome can be cured with Prolotherapy. By
the way, did the dentist call me to find out what I did? No, they never do.
Treatment
of TMJ Syndrome
Louis Schultz, M.D., an oral
surgeon, reported in 1956 that, after 20 years of experience in treating
hypermobile temporomandibular joints with Prolotherapy, the clicking, grating,
or popping was controlled in all of the several thousand patients that had been
under his care, without any reported complications or deleterious effects. Dr.
Schultz wrote, "various types of treatment used in the past (for TMJ
Syndrome) and still employed by some operators appear to he unsatisfactory.
Surgery is one." One problem with surgery is the resultant scars. Anywhere
surgery is done, scar tissue will form. Again, as in all chronic painful
conditions, there are a myriad of treatment options. A treatment that includes a
surgeon's knife should be reserved until all conservative treatment options have
been exhausted.
Prolotherapy in
TMJ is very simple. One to two cc's of a mixture of 25 percent
Dextrose, 20 percent
Sarapin, and 0.4 percent
lidocaine is injected into and around the
temporomandibular joint(s). The patient is placed on a soft diet until the mouth
is able to fully open. The TMJ Prolotherapy injections cause an awkward bite and
a tight jaw for a couple of days. The patient should not force the mouth open
during this time period.
Modern medical practitioners will
pressure sick people to utilize their services. Options now available for people
with head and neck pain are TMJ
arthroscopic surgery, TMJ implants, cervical
spine surgery (many varieties), botulinum toxin injections into muscles, and the
latest gizmo, surgical cauterization, which zaps the bones with a
radiofrequency
wave destroying the treated area. This last technique may eliminate a patient's
pain because it destroys the
fibro-osseous
junction, where the pain originates.
Why destroy or remove a structure when there is a treatment that will help
strengthen and repair it? Prolotherapy causes a permanent strengthen mg of
ligaments and
tendons and eliminates the root cause of the pain.
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Prolotherapy to the jaw in TMJ
syndrome. X marks the spot. |
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