How Do You Know If Tinnitus Is from TMJ?

What are some signs that the tinnitus may be from TMJ?

I don’t suspect hearing or nerve damage is the problem because there is no reason for that considering I am still very young (13) but certain movements with my mouth and neck make different tones and maybe that means it is also muscle related too?

I have been with the mouth guard for about a month now and the TMJ hasn’t really changed, neither has the tinnitus.

Wondering if the tinnitus is still there because it isn’t TMJ related, or the TMJ treatment isn’t working...

 

The first step is to check whether you have TMJ. Still, there is no way to know for sure. You can try TMJ treatments and see of they help.

 

Is TMJ tinnitus 24/7? My ENT said that TMJ tinnitus is typically not 24/7, and would be unusual.

 

Secondary effects of TMJ like trigeminal nerve entrapment via the lateral pterygoid muscle can give you 24/7 tinnitus. I have TMJ and partial anterio-medial disc displacement for both TM joints which worse on my right side which is where I have my worse tinnitus that is 24/7. This type of displacement has been theorized to trigger what I discuss above. If I release that muscle on my right side, my tinnitus improves slightly and I start to hear crunching sounds coming from my right TM joint which I assume is partly because the disc there is moving and trying to center itself on the condyle again. More troubleshooting is required. Tension in the medial and/or lateral pterygoids due to TMJ definitely means connecting muscles will be tense as well. TMJ is an intensely esoteric and complicated condition.

Agree with @Lilah - Get a TMJ consultation from a neuromuscular or maxillofacial dentist. Since you are young, you need to fix this early on to prevent problems as the jaw continues to develop as you age. Also, being younger should work in your favor as far as healing goes as well once you can diagnose and treat your condition if you remain healthy and you in fact have TMJ.

 

Just found this video. I think I may be onto something for my tinnitus...

TMJ (Jaw Pain): Two Release Techniques | John...

 

Quick simple read for symptoms of TMJ-related tinnitus - https://www.signiausa.com/blog/tmj-problem-causing-tinnitus/. As I mentioned before, TMJ is an incredibly complex condition forum. If you look thru the forum, some users say their tinnitus is and some say their tinnitus is not caused by TMJ.

 

Tinnitus definitely increases in volume when I chew down. And tones go up in volume to 20/10, filling my whole head, when I yawn.

Had a 3d xray of my head done for TMJ last week and just had consultation with the orthodontist. He showed me the xray and confirmed issues with TMJ. I asked him which side looked worse and he said my left side looks much worse. This was before I told him my tinnitus is much worse on my left side, that I have some -20 db hearing loss on my left side, and that I get jaw pain and facial numbness on my left side. So I'm thinking he is not bullshiting me. Once we hear back from my insurance I'm going to move forward with his therapy, which involves wearing mouth guards.

My T started 10 months ago the day after getting my teeth cleaned. Then made much much worse with new tones, hyperacusis, and sound distortions 7 months later when I got my teeth cleaned a second time. At first, I blamed music since I was playing in a band at the time. It wasn't till my second teeth cleaning that I put 2 and 2 together. At this point, I blamed the sound of the ultra sonic scaler they used to clean my teeth. Recent ENT I saw did not believe it was noise induced from the band or from the scaler based on my audiogram, but thought it was due to nerve damage either from a virus or from the dental work. Praying this TMJ therapy will improve my hearing issues. Not expecting a cure, but if it can improve things by even 25%, I will consider it a blessing.

Has your TMJ/neck improved at all? Has it affected your tinnitus?

 

I used to get this every time, but now it only happens sometimes in the mornings if I've been lying on the side opposite where the main tone is occurring. It only started after a severe noise trauma back in June, so although the main tone is still there, it's more faint, and the related tones are fewer and less severe. Maybe it will decrease over time for you too.

 

Hi @Phat Tuna -

My tinnitus has improved significantly, is now mostly isolated to my right ear where it started, and sometimes goes away completely for a couple hours here and there since starting my treatment plan in Nov 2019. My tinnitus started two days after receiving a night guard for grinding in July 2019, and then went into free-fall from there. I had TMJ (worse on the right side) and a misaligned jaw sloping downward to the left. I have been undergoing dual orthotic therapy for my TMJ since Nov 2019, and I am currently on week 10 of 12. My treatment was not covered by insurance and cost $6K which I am paying out of pocket (but it has been worth it). Be patient with the orthotics as they take time to work. By Week 4, my ear pain, jaw pain, and hyperacusis were gone. Now, when watching my jaw open, my TMJ joints more or less rotate and translate to much of the same degree, the clicking is gone, and my lower jaw has straightened considerably. If you go forward with orthotics therapy, practice TMJ exercises and releases several times a day. Carefully try the lateral pterygoid release (see video earlier in the thread - was able to open my jaw ~5 mm more only after two days of doing this and this improved my sinus congestion as well which has not been as bad since (still trying to figure that one out)) and tape your mouth shut when you sleep to breathe your nose (mouth breathing can trigger bruxism). I also tend to get tension headaches in my temples. This facial massage device has been a godsend - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07Z7P7FJX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1. I use this before going to bed and again if I wake up in the middle of the night as part of my routine to fall asleep, and in the morning if I wake-up with a tension headache due to grinding.

I would also strongly advise you check for other additional degrees of musculoskeletal misalignment and neuromuscular imbalance that TMJ, bruxism, and a misaligned jaw can trigger as well. On top of my TMJ and misaligned jaw, I had a leg length discrepancy with my right leg 1.5" shorter than my left, right lateral pelvic tilt, anterior pelvic tilt, misaligned shoulders sloping downward to the right, forward head posture, and a misaligned atlas. Your body can misalign top-down or bottom-up, and postural compensations for single minor imbalance can proceed quickly. I added 6 months of atlas orthogonal upper cervical chiropractic treatment to my treatment plan as this type of treatment is often combined to with other approaches to treat TMJ. Having a background in athletic training and powerlifting, I also designed my own Physical Therapy regiment. This has been a helpful site for me for this - http://posturedirect.com/. I would caution you not to do this type of thing on your own if you do not have a background in it. If not, get a referral for Physical Therapy and get a comprehensive exam and then development a PT regiment from there. A game-changer for me has the Pso-Rite - https://www.amazon.com/PSO-RITE-Pso...r_1_3?keywords=pso-rite&qid=1579460017&sr=8-3. If you have poor posture like me, pay special attention to the psoas, serratus anterior, serratus posterior, and QL muscles. Stretching all these muscles on a regular basis as part of a PT plan, has led to a sustained decrease in the volume of my tinnitus. Often times, the cause of TMJ is not straightforward as is the case with tinnitus and if it caused by an underlying misalignment and imbalance, correcting the symptom (TMJ) and not the underlying cause will only result in short-term relief and TMJ may well return. On a related note, practice good sitting and standing posture as well.

My treatment plan encompasses much more than this, but I continue to spend considerable time at sea and I will be moving in the early spring to take a teaching faculty position, so I have been too busy summarize all of my notes on my condition and subsequent treatment that now spans two full 3-subject notebooks. I will just say adopt the practice of the scientific method along with a holistic and systematic treatment approach to your tinnitus treatment. Most all papers I have investigated close saying tinnitus sufferers often achieve the best results when combining several different types of treatments; the only thing is that it is up to you with your doctors to find the combination of treatments that work best for you,

Other quick recommendations I have for treating tinnitus likely due to musculoskeletal misalignment and neuromuscular imbalances follow below -

1) Prioritize Sleep! - Get 7-8 hours a night with at least 90-120 minutes of REM sleep and 120-180 hours of deep per night (these are my targets only). I noticed that the less REM sleep I got per night, the more tinnitus bothered me and the more irritable I was during the day. The less deep sleep I get, the more sore I feel. There are several devices that can track sleep nowadays. I purchased this one - https://www.amazon.com/Withings-Nok...?keywords=sleep+tracker&qid=1579461298&sr=8-4. The gold standard seems to be the Dreem 2 (more info - https://dreem.com/en). I plan on purchasing the latter once I am settled in my new job as it is 5x as expensive as the one I purchased. Tracking my sleep, also alerted me to all of my breathing disturbances that prompted an investigation of sleep apnea. Also, when sleeping, keep your spine in a neutral position. I have still not mastered sleeping on my back and continue to sleep on my side. I keep a pillow between my knees when sleeping, sleep with a lumbar support pillow, and am careful not to rotate my pelvis relative to my thorax and neck (which will cause or worsen misalignments and imbalances that contribute to tinnitus. Educate yourself about good sleep hygiene, develop a routine that incorporates deep breathing or meditation, and stick with it. With all of this, I was gradually became more aware of my sleep, was able to understand it, and now stress much less about it. Without good sleep, your body cannot heal, fight inflammation, and sustain proper bone metabolism; all which will help resolve your TMJ and possibly your tinnitus.

2) If you are not a healthy weight, make sustained lifestyle changes to lose weight and achieve a healthy BMI. There are several health benefits of losing weight, which I will not restate here. For me with an anterior pelvic tilt, however, this means less of gut and weight in my abdomen that pulls my spine forward and out of alignment. Also, less weight above my pelvis that could pull it more to one side or the other. When my tinnitus started I was 6'2" and 235 lbs in July 2019 and now I oscillate between 195 and 200 lbs. Once I reach 180-185 lbs, I will restart light weight training. A PT regiment undertaken to address tinnitus attributed musculoskeletal misalignment and neuromuscular imbalance can help support this as it should consist of stretching shortened muscles that remain chronically contracted, strengthening weak muscles, and reversing muscular atrophy all while practice good posture. In my case, I mostly focus on my core, glutes, upper legs, important postural muscles (see above), and exercises to fix forward head posture. Start slow and work up from there. I started by walking at a brisk pace for 45 minutes 5x a week and did beginner Foundational Training in the morning, before lunch, and in the evening before bed -

Foundation Training original 12 minutes

3) Normalize and learn control your cortisol, adrenaline, and norepinephrine (stress hormone) levels! - Working in a high-stress environment where the need to publish and secure funding is always present and going thru graduate school to get there, I think I have been over-stressed most of my life. After learning the body releases excess cortisol thru bruxism at night, this eventually led me to Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome (AFS) (more info - https://www.annelemonswellness.com/blog-1/2017/12/31/adrenal-fatigue-what-is-it-and-how-do-i-fix-it). A good book for it as well that I bought and read - https://www.amazon.com/Adrenal-Fati...drenal+fatigue+syndrome&qid=1579463404&sr=8-4). Conventional medical professionals do not agree AFS is a real condition, but as an objective outside scientific observer, I would say there are several things folks in those professions do not approach correctly including tinnitus; a condition that continues to lack a document that leverages all alternative and conventional treatments. AFS is similar. I am hesitant to offer advice on how to approach this since it will truly vary on an individual basis as it did for me. I would recommend a consultation with a naturopathic doctor for anyone who is interested in this treatment pathway. Simple things like exercise to release stress, practicing good sleep hygiene, developing hobbies, and staying social with friends and family has gone a long way for me. Also, I drink teas several times a day containing holy ginger and adaptogenic herbs between meals and before bed as well.

4) Stay hydrated! - The more stressed you are, the greater your hydration need will become.

Probably more than what you were looking for, but I believe tinnitus caused by TMJ is much more complicated than it seems as it was for me. My combination of treatments has paid dividends for me, and I am confident my tinnitus will completely disappear in the next 6-12 months if I continue. In closing, develop a treatment plan and consistently stick with it (I know it is possible as I still follow the plan even when at sea).

Good luck with your own tinnitus journey and I hope your TMJ and tinnitus improves in the future.

Looking forward to being more active on the forum in the late spring or early summer once things slow down for me.

 

Hi there @oceanofsound26, when I first got tinnitus nobody made that connection in fact the ENT had not heard of it. Subsequently saw another ENT who had heard of it and thought it was plausible however the maxillofacial surgeon knew nothing about it and did not think any intervention would benefit me. I then researched orthotics this summer during a spike but they’re not widely available on the UK. I was part of an LVI Facebook group, managed by the LVI founder. Results seem to be there for presumed Meniere's sufferers but I didn’t see much around tinnitus... please keep us informed.

 

Hi @Candy -

Sorry to hear your docs over in the UK are not well-informed about the connections between TMJ, jaw problems, and tinnitus. In the USA, there is an entire field of gneuromuscular/neuromuscular dentistry that deals with TMJ and other associated conditions. My tinnitus was not all that bad for the first couple of months until one night I bit into a bit of overcooked chicken that elicited an immediate pain response in my right masseter above my TM joint which followed by pain in my neck, left shoulder, and left my side of core, and then everything cascaded from there which set off the chain of events that led to myself taking a more active role in my treatment. There were several preliminary problems I have had that made me prone to developing tinnitus, and I think my bruxism and the event I discussed above are what caused and worsened my tinnitus, respectively. Bruxism and TMJ are downstream (cause) and upstream (symptom) problems of several different health issues. My treatment started with the development of "treatment web" with bruxism and TMJ at the center with branches for any health issues I can find associated with bruxism and TMJ, whether upstream or downstream, which were then incorporated into the combination of treatment and self-care I perform to treat my tinnitus.

From my experience, once the all the usual causes of tinnitus are discounted and dismissed, docs no longer take an interest in the getting to the bottom of the cause and diagnose it as idiopathic probably because they are too busy and desensitized to a certain degree. This leaves looking for a treatment to the patient who has take the initiative. When conventional treatments failed to give me an answer, I inevitably turned to the alternative treatments and I eventually received the best advice from my chiropractor, neuromuscular dentist, and acupuncturist. I believe my tinnitus was definitely caused by some combination of musculoskeletal alignment and neuromuscular imbalance which exists as a distinct tinnitus sub-type in the literature even though medical folks cannot come to a definitive consensus on this. Literature are replete with anecdotal evidence about the diagnosis and treatment of this sub-type of tinnitus. Enough anecdotal evidence should trigger medical studies that would yield empirical evidence and cement this tinnitus sub-type in conventional medicine which has not seemed to happen yet.

Will be more active on the forum once I make my move and start my new job in the late spring and early summer. I think once my schedule normalizes and I have some regularity once again, it will help my tinnitus even more. Continued luck the tinnitus in the UK and I hope your spike subsides if it has not already.

All the best,

-oceanofsound26

 

Thank you so much for the well thought out reply and advice. I will come back to this and reread it several times I am sure. I am so happy that you have found relief in all of this.

It is amazing to me that the jaw can cause hyperacusis. I am dealing with hyperacusis now along with distorted hearing and it is the worst thing I have ever experienced. I hope the TMJ is indeed the cause for me and that I have as much luck with the orthotics as you have.

I do. I have started seeing a chiropractor/physio therapist who is working with me on my forward head posture. He has given me a handful of exercises, which I have been doing everyday, but I can tell progress with this will be very slow.

Yeah I agree sleep is crucial to all facets of health. Right before this all happened (new reactive tinnitus, hyperacusis, distorted hearing, and TMJ/facial pain) back in October, I was battling insomnia. After acquiring all these new symptoms the insomnia got a lot worse and my back was against the wall so I had to turn to meds. I'm currently still taking them (seroquel) for sleep, but I hope to come off of them as soon as I can. Even with Seroquel, I struggle, but I got one of those Oura Rings, which has helped me a lot in understanding what helps me sleep better.

I am a healthy weight, but on the thin side. I wish I had more weight, because one of the only things that I find helps my tinnitus is fasting, but at my current weight it is hard to do for very long or often.

 

Thanks @oceanofsound26.

I've had TMJ since I was 21, bite guards, bite realignment. Up and down for 20 years and better as I got older. Then 3.5 years ago another bout culminating in limited jaw opening. After I got better the tinnitus appeared, very strange as there was a two month gap. Now can’t do jaw exercise as I have little opening...

The maxillofacial wanted to investigate further with MRI but given that she said treatment would not provide tinnitus relief I left it...

 

Hi @Candy

Sorry to hear about your 20+ years with TMJ. I have probably had TMJ for quite awhile but only recently worsened this past summer which triggered the treatment I am currently undergoing. In my case, muscle tension and misalignment elsewhere is related to my TMJ and tinnitus. The tinnitus keeps improving and at this point remains a minor annoyance. The neck, back, shoulder, and flank pain I started feeling along with my TMJ has been difficult to deal with. Luckily the combination of TMJ treatment, chiro treatment, PT, and other self care help all my problems and symptoms.

I hope you find some relief from both TMJ and tinnitus in the future.

All the best,

-Oceanofsound26

 

TMJ and forward head posture are indeed related. As the neck continues to flex forward and the head tips forward and down towards the ground, the changing alignment of the upper jaw realigns the lower jaw and shifts it back and up out of the joint space. I would encourage you to still explore other musculoskeletal misalignment below the neck (e.g., type of pelvic tilt). Anything that propels the head/neck forward will eventually migrate down and pull the shoulders, thorax, and pelvis forward as well. On the other hand, anything that propels the pelvis forward will migrate up and eventually pull the rest of your upper body forward and out of misalignment. Further exploration to discern whether your forward head posture is a cause or symptom of existing misalignment may be warranted. Just something to keep in mind.

I have been battling insomnia since college and it has only gotten worse thru graduate school to the present day. Identifying stress points (except the whole tinnitus situation) and reducing will go a long way to improve sleep over time. For me, work has always been a stress point which is why I will be switching jobs here shortly that takes me out of the field and paper chase of academia which will hopefully improve my situation even more. Be careful with the sleeps meds and follow your docs' recommendations as far as getting off them.

If you have forward head posture like me, I would also recommend checking your sleep posture. I noticed I used to sleep with my neck in a forward-flexed position. Over time, it will only make the problem worse, the road to recovery slower, and possibly worsen exist sleep-disordered breathing (since it narrows the airway) and trigger bruxism (one of my problems). I use a cervical neck and position it so that my head is positioned above my shoulders where it belongs which has helped my sleep even more. Good to hear you are tracking your sleep...becoming aware of something is one of the first steps on the road to understanding it.

Hope you can get some relief from the orthotic therapy if you go forward with it.

All the best,

-Oceanofsound26

 

Hello again. Thanks again for all of your insight. I would just like to ask if your dentist you have been seeing for TMJ is LVI certified?

It wasn't till a couple of days ago I learned about LVI and neuromuscular dentistry. I didn't realize there was a difference in TMJ treatments using orthotics. There are no LVI dentists in my area. The closest one is 2 hours away. Sucks, but I would be willing to do it if it is the best of the best treatment option. However.... I have already started TMJ treatment with another orthodontist. He checked my posture and so forth and we did a 3D CT scan, where he confirmed my TMJ issues. However, prior to getting my orthotic, there were no other measurements done that I'm aware of. Did not use a TENS machine or anything like that. I am about 10 days into wearing the orthotic and my ear symptoms have not really changed. My bite definitely has changed though. My jaw doesn't crunch like before and my sleep has actually improved as well wearing the orthotic. I am just paranoid now that I went the wrong route and maybe I may have been much better off with the LVI dentist 2 hours away. To change now and restart therapy with new dentist will probably put me out a lot of money, but if LVI truly is the end-all-be-all, then perhaps it is worth it.

 

@Phat Tuna are you on the LVI Facebook page? Asking because the founder of LVI himself has tinnitus hence would be cautious.

 

Yes I am. That wouldn't worry me too much about that, personally. Pretty much every MD I have seen has some form of tinnitus. It is so common, his might not be TMJ related at all. And I am much more concerned about my hyperacusis and neck/ear/head pain than my tinnitus.

 

Good point - I have had TMJ for many years - it was bad in my twenties, now settled as I have limited mouth opening...

 

Hmm... Have you ever sought treatment?

LVI may all be marketing mumbo jumbo, but that's what I'm trying to figure out. My current orthodontist doing my TMJ treatment seems to use more old school methods.

Not sure if my tinnitus is 100% due to TMJ, but I believe at least some part of it is. Tinnitus initially started after getting my teeth cleaned one year ago. And then made worse with newly acquired hyperacusis after getting my teeth cleaned again 5 months ago. But I didn't realize I had TMJ till 2 months ago after getting a CT scan. Just had a crown done earlier this week and my tinnitus is a little worse again.

 

Yes I don’t know what to make of it, certainly not taken off here in the UK, there’s one guy only.

It’s holistic basically as opposed to main stream. In the UK they either leave it alone or operate...

I’m in an Facebook page for TMJ and Meniere's and they all talk about improving however when studying in more detail it’s the vertigo that’s better and hearing retrieved - their tinnitus is fluctuating and improves when their hearing improves. This is typical if Ménière's tinnitus but they don’t think they have Ménière's, just TMJ. Not sure what TMJ tinnitus is like but it can’t be as bad as mine, it should be more up and down imo.

 

Not sure how much of mine is TMJ related, but it does fluctuate a lot. However, I've never had actual pure silence since it started a year ago. But 10 days ago, for example, it was mostly just a hiss in the center of my head. Very manageable. Today I have different pure tones in both ears. Some are steady and some have a rhythmic beeping pattern. Just started TMJ treatment with an orthotic 10 days ago. Could be that which is aggravating things as I get used to this new jaw position. Also had a crown done 4 days ago, so could be from TMJ being aggravated during the procedure or the sound of the drill. Praying it wasn't the sound of the drill.

 

It’s more to do with keeping the jaw open during the op.
Is the orthotic a night time appliance?

 

It is removable. But I am to wear it 24/7 except when eating. I have to say it HAS helped me sleep better. I slept through the entire night the last two nights, which I have not done in YEARS. It attaches to my upper teeth and it forces my bottom teeth and jaw forward. It it is hard to talk with it in, so they also give you one that goes on lower teeth but is much less intense and easy to talk and socialize with. But I guess the lower one just stabilizes the jaw and does not actually move it, and the upper one is the workhorse. So far I have been very compliant and wear the upper orthotic as often as possible.

 

@Phat Tuna - Have not forgot about this. Will post again over the weekend.

 

Hi @Phat Tuna -

Been busy with life and work recently. Picking up the discussion where I left it -

I have no idea what an LVI certification is. My neuromuscular dentist has a few different of certifications in neuromuscular dentistry, TMJ, and Dental Sleep medicine. I do not remember them off-hand.

Had all of that done as well but got a Cone Beam CT scan instead (probably similar). They also conducted some sort of test where I wore a headset with microphones to pick up sounds from my TM joints as I opened (to hyperextension) and closed my mouth repeatedly. I do not remember what the name of the test was and cannot find it on the internet either. I had one before getting my orthotics and another after my 12 weeks of orthotic therapy with my daytime appliance. The end test revealed zero sounds with my TM joints and jaw as I can now open and close my jaw without issue.

A TENS machine was never used during my treatment, but Cold Laser Therapy (LLLT) was used during each visit during my orthotics therapy treatment period.

I had a list of things I wanted my TMJ treatment to accomplish. Checked everything off except fixing my tinnitus, but I continue improve every week with everything else I paired with my TMJ treatments that I continue to do. TMJ treatment with orthotics is a conservative and reversible treatment. Since you already started it, I would take your current treatment to completion at this point. It was about 4-6 weeks before I saw any improvements in ear pain, ear fullness, or hyperacusis. Orthotics take time to work. You could always try the LVI treatment later on (it sounds expensive though). My TMJ and jaw problems were secondary downstream effects of larger and more serious upstream issues, and they have more or less resolved at this point, but I continue to work on everything else liking losing weight and fixing my anterior pelvic tilt and forward head posture to minimize the chances of my TMJ and jaw problems returning.

Poor occlusion, bite deformities, and/or some type of nerve issue depending on how much enamel eroded over time (since you needed to have crowns installed) might have been part of your tinnitus onset. Tinnitus is often the product of several problems and not often restricted to a single cause (as it was in my case). Since it will be hard to backdate when you developed TMJ, it is hard to say if your tinnitus was caused by TMJ. With your dental and orthodontic history, TMJ might be related in some way though.

My tinnitus flutters most of the time and goes up and down in pitch. Luckily, the volume is a 1-3 out of 10 most days now and I have returned to living a life similar to what I did prior to developing tinnitus last summer.

If your crowns are changing your occlusion, it will likely aggravate your TMJ since the angle at which the jaw closes might change as could your jaw's resting position. Hopefully your dentist is also not setting the crowns so they do not sit too high.

All sounds similar to my orthotics treatment. Nighttime orthotics that force your lower jaw forward are routinely used to treat sleep disturbed breathing like hypopnias and mild sleep apnea. My nighttime orthotic prevents my lower jaw from sliding back which closes the airway and also causes sleep apnea. If you were not sleeping through the night before getting your nighttime orthotic and were waking up >3 times per night before morning, I would recommend you get some type of sleep study done to check for sleep apnea. The type of orthotic you have for nighttime use is not generally meant for long-term treatment of sleep-disordered breathing if you in fact have it. Follow the treatments outlined by your dentist/orthodontist diligently. Hopefully you will start to see results.

Good luck with the treatments and I hope you some relief from jaw and ear problems in the future.

All the best,

-Oceanofsound26

 

@Candy @Phat Tuna @oceanofsound26 I have crunching on the right side of my jaw whenever I swallow and a bit of ear fullness there as well... How am I supposed to treat this, it only gives me very mild pain when I chew at times but worried it will make my existing tinnitus worse or get me new sounds...

Any advice? It’s only been a month like this.

 

Hi @Shaqz -

Hard to say without more diagnostic information. Sounds like you have developed some laxity on the right side of your jaw and possibly with your TM joint. When opening your jaw, does it swing left or right before coming back to center? If it does, you are probably developing some TMJ issues. Minor TMJ issues can often go away on their own, but the fact it has gone on for a month starts to put up some red flags. If you regularly chew on the right side of your mouth, start chewing on the left and right sides evenly (if you can, depending on severity, this may not be a good idea but only a dentist can tell you this). Chewing on one side all the time will lead to disproportionate wear and tear on that side and possibly lead to malocclusion and changes in the angle at which the jaw closes and possibly your phonetic jaw position. The lower jaw aligns to the upper jaw, so if you have malocclusion on your upper jaw then your lower jaw may misalign and thereby affect the strength of the TM joint ligaments and the position of the TM joint in the joint space. If you

I would recommend avoiding hard foods (like granola bars), switching to softer foods, and prepping hard foods in some way to make them softer and more tolerable (like boiling carrots before consumption rather than eating them raw). If you are a slide sleeper, try to avoid sleeping on that side if you can. Combinations of hot and cold compresses to dull pain and relax the mastication muscles. Some gentle jaw relaxation exercises would probably help as well (there are plenty on Youtube that do the trick). If you grind and clench at night, take some steps to reduce the frequency and severity - reduce stress, increase room temperature, run a humidifier, and/or tape your mouth shut when sleep to breathe your nose.

If none of this helps, start to check your sitting and standing posture. Check if you have any postural deficiencies/deviations like a misaligned jaw, forward head posture, rounded shoulders, uneven shoulders, any type of pelvic tilt or rotation, or a leg length discrepancy to name a few. If you have any of these, you are predisposing yourself to TMJ, jaw problems, and possibly poor postural compensations. If you habitually leave your body in awkward positions for long periods of time, this becomes your new "normal posture" and your body will adapt, misalign, and draft other muscles for supporting parts of the body they do not normally support accordingly. A visit to a physical therapist may be needed if you find yourself in this situation to get some stretches to do correct these problems. Other things like light cardio and weight loss will help as well depending on your BMI and overall health. Practice good posture from now on as well.

If none of this helps, a visit to a neuromuscular or maxillofacial dentist might be needed to get some imaging and a better diagnosis. If you grind and clench at night, a night guard or orthotic might help. But be sure to get the right type for your specific situation though - there are a couple different types. TMJ treatments are expensive though so be sure the weigh potential benefit of treatment against its cost in both time and money.

Another related thread - https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/3-months-into-tinnitus-—-developing-jaw-pain.39479/#post-516950.

Hope the info helps and good luck with everything.

-Oceanofsound26

 

@oceanofsound26 you are a saint, thank you so much! And mine was caused because I was in extreme stress and anxiety. I could barely move and I went on a flight. I had ETD for only a couple of days and tried to fix that issue with chewing gum excessively for 3 days. Last day my jaw literally dislocated and then located and it’s been like that since...

Funny you talk about over chewing. I only used my right side for about 8 months because I took my left molar out waiting for an implant...

 

Is it possible to get TMJ splint with a missing molar, while waiting for an implant? I haven’t pulled the tooth out but its on a root canal that’s reinfected and close to my sinus-very close. And I think extraction is the best route.

I can’t see DDS because of the coronavirus. Any experience or advice would be appreciated it?