JACKSON, Miss., June 20, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dr. Donald Seago of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Associates in Jackson reports that they have succeeded in treating people who suffer from Temporomandibular Joint Disorder, commonly called TMJ. TMJ is a condition that causes pain, tightness and popping or cracking sounds when a person tries to open or close his or her mouth. The condition can make it difficult for sufferers to eat, talk, yawn or sleep and may also come with headaches and neck pain. According to Dr. Seago and his fellow oral surgeons, successful TMJ treatment depends largely on correctly diagnosing the exact cause of the jaw pain.
Dr. Seago says that the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research estimates that more than 10 million Americans suffer from TMJ. "My patients struggling with jaw pain ask me, 'What is TMJ?' The pain can be debilitating and difficult to treat because the temporomandibular joint, which connects the jaw bone to the skull, is one of the most complex joints in the body. When it becomes inflamed, the jaw pain starts. Anything from excessive stress and overnight teeth grinding to a broken jaw can be a TMJ culprit. So the key for us in providing successful TMJ treatment is to first find out why the patient is suffering."
Dr. Seago, Dr. Stephen R. Gandy and Dr. David E. Seago treat TMJ patients from both Jackson and Madison. When a patient comes in with a broken jaw, or cannot open his or her mouth, an oral surgeon may need to perform corrective surgery to realign and reconstruct the temporomandibular joint and surrounding structures. However, Dr. Seago says that the vast majority of TMJ cases come from stress. He says that when people are stressed, some of them tend to clench their jaws tightly, which strains and inflames the joint. Many people also suffer from bruxism, or overnight teeth grinding, which not only puts stress on the jaw, but can wear down the surfaces of the teeth and cause dental problems.
According to Dr. Gandy, teaching patients to lower their stress levels helps relieve jaw clenching. The oral surgeons also recommend eating only soft foods for a time, while also applying ice packs and learning how to relax the face and jaw muscles. If their teeth show evidence of bruxism, they create a personalized bite guard to stop overnight teeth grinding.
Dr. Gandy says that these treatments have been very successful in relieving jaw pain from TMJ. "Obviously, if a patient has a broken jaw, we will have to operate, but if not, reducing stress to reduce the inflammation is usually the answer."
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Associates treats patients with a number of oral conditions requiring surgery such as TMJ, jaw injuries, bone grafting, dental implants and oral lesions. Their website is http://omspajackson.com.