Sometimes caused by injury but more often appearing without warning or obvious cause, TMJ is one of those physical annoyances that can crop up in the human body. However, the condition is not a sign of serious illness, and most symptoms will go away without needing major treatment in most cases.
The lack of a need for any treatment is actually a good thing because scientists still don’t know what to do about the condition. There is currently no scientific research that shows what treatments work and which don’t. In most cases, even persistent ones, the current recommendation is watchful waiting and hope that the symptoms and pain go away on their own, with pain medication and recommendations on stress reduction the most commonly prescribed methods of dealing with the condition.
That’s not to say that TMJ isn’t annoying. The symptoms can include pain, ringing in the ears and migraine headaches. It is estimated that three-fourths of Americans have one or more of these symptoms at one time or another, and about 5 to 10 percent of those need a doctor’s attention, if only to abate the pain. Because there is no sure-fire treatment, many patients who seek relief sometimes are convinced to undertake comprehensive and costly treatments that do little to help them find relief.
How the Jaw Works
The TMJ has a hinge and a sliding mechanism. When you open your mouth, the rounded ends (called condyles) of the lower jaw slide along the sockets of the temporal bone. The muscles connecting the jaw and this temporal bone allow chewing and other jaw movements, with a soft disc in between absorbing shock to the jaw caused by chewing and other movements.