Do you know what it’s like: grinding your teeth, clenching your jaw? Noises in your ears?
Complaints in the head, neck and spine area?
Did you also know that even headaches, sleep disorders and even tinnitus can have their cause in the jaw?
Are you one of those people who frequently suffer from one or more of these complaints but have not yet received a concrete diagnosis from doctors and therapists?
Then you are not alone!
There is often a malfunction of the lower jaw and jaw joints (craniomandibular dysfunction or CMD) with a “wrong bite” as a result of dysregulation, which in turn can trigger complaints throughout the body.
If you are affected, ask a specialist specializing in functional diagnostics whether you have a functional disorder.
You can use our dentist search to find DIR® dentists in your region.
Incorrect bite and CMD
Bite disorders and CMD with the symptoms described are widespread.
They are functional disorders of the craniomandibular system (jaw, jaw joints, teeth, masticatory muscles).
However, the causes can be not only functional, but also structural, biochemical or psychological (e.g. teeth grinding due to stress).
The most important functions of the craniomandibular system are chewing and speaking: Functions that we need all the time.
If there is a functional disorder, chewing and speaking, even laughing, leads to persistent overload, which can then trigger painful stress symptoms throughout the body.
A vicious circle
More than 1,500 dental contacts every day – about half of them at night – are a real challenge for your teeth.
Every person with a fully edentulous jaw has a “stress protection system”.
This stress protection system is not only used for speaking, laughing and swallowing, but also during physical activity.
If the stress protection system is disturbed by insufficient or increased tooth contact – e.g. due to incorrectly positioned crowns or old fillings – the bite is no longer optimal.
Receptors report these incorrect or interfering contacts to the brain.
The brain in turn sends the message to the masticatory muscles: Bite down harder – correct the misalignment!
The increased strain leads to overloading and pain in the neck and chewing muscles and spreads to the entire body.
The physical complaints mentioned above often occur as a possible consequence of the dysfunction.
Malfunction?
The figures speak for themselves: around 10% of the population are affected by misalignments of the temporomandibular joints, including many headache sufferers. 85% of headache patients suffer from jaw misalignment and CMD, claimed a neurologist from Essen in the “Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung” (Dr. Gerhard in: WAZ, 2008).
The dentist can help!
The causes of the specific functional disorder should be analyzed individually by the dentist.
Manual-clinical and instrumental functional diagnostics (DIR® concept) are available for reliable anamnesis and treatment.
In this way, you as a patient receive truly effective treatment!
Important to know!
Every patient has a right to functional prophylaxis!
It is also generally sensible and advisable to carry out a diagnostic examination with the DIR® system before fabricating new dentures in order to ensure the “correct bite” and avoid possible complications.
Schmerzen, die vom Kiefer kommen, Kopfschmerzen, Migräne, Nacken- und Schulterverspannungen, Ohrgeräusche, Tinnitus, Kiefergelenksprobleme, HWS-Beschwerden, Probleme in der Lendenwirbelsäule- alle diese Beschwerden können eine Ursache haben: CMD (Craniomandibuläre Dysfunktion). Circa acht Prozent aller Menschen leiden an der so genannten CMD. Als Craniomandibuläre Dysfunktion bezeichnet man Beschwerden, die aufgrund von Form- und Funktionsstörungen im Schädel- und Gesichtsbereich herrühren. Ein Schmerz muss seine Ursache nicht immer dort haben, wo es weh tut. Der Mensch ist eine Einheit. So passiert es oft, dass der Ursprung des Schmerzes ganz woanders zu finden ist als der Schmerz selbst. Es ist möglich, den Biss zu diagnostizieren. Eines unserer Schwerpunkte ist die Funktionsanalyse und Therapie des Kausystems. Dr. Annette Jasper, München
