Even when your oral health is trying to tell you that something is wrong, it can sometimes be easy to ignore the symptoms, or to fail to take them seriously because they don’t seem severe. When it comes to chronic jaw pain, the discomfort might be more intense, but failing to understand why can cause some people to consider it a less than serious problem. Today, we explain why you should take jaw pain seriously, what it might indicate about your bite function, and what you could experience if you wait too long to address it.

What does TMJ disorder mean?

Chronic, increasingly worse jaw pain is often a sign that your jaw joints and/or muscles aren’t performing properly. Your jaw joints are known as temporomandibular joints, or TMJs, and problems with their function are often the result of a condition known as TMJ disorder. This describes different forms of damage or dysfunction that makes it more difficult for the joints to work properly, or can cause them to hurt increasingly worse over time as the pressure of your biting and chewing gets worse.

If you notice these signs, too

In addition to chronic jaw pain, which will grow more intense over time, TMJ disorder can also lead to a wide variety of other oral health symptoms. For instance, people who suffer from TMJ disorder may also experience symptoms such as:

• Headaches and/or migraines
• Earaches, or tinnitus
• A habit of grinding your teeth together
• Sore and aching muscles in your face and neck
• And more

If you notice these or other signs of TMJ disorder in addition to your chronic jaw pain, then the cause of all of these symptoms may be traced to the development of TMJ disorder.

How to alleviate your chronic jaw pain

Diagnosing the source of your jaw pain is the fastest and surest way to find lasting relief from it. If the cause of your symptoms is traced back to TMJ disorder, then you be able to treat the condition and find relief from it with help from a custom-designed TMJ appliance. The device can be customized to offer support for your jaw to better balance your TMJs while you sleep.

Learn if you need TMJ treatment

If your jaw hurts all the time, it’s probably a good idea to take it seriously and have your dentist determine the reason why. To learn more, schedule a consultation by calling the Dental Centre of Conroe in Conroe, TX, today at (936) 441-4600. We serve patients from Conroe and all neighboring communities.