Tinnitus Caused by Forcefully Closing My Locked Jaw — Would Getting an MRI Make Sense?

Hello,

My jaw locked open in 2009 and as I closed it on force (it was painful) my tinnitus has stared.

I have had it ever since, but lately it got worse. It's probably due my teeth being aligned. The position of my jaw has changed to a more natural position, I'm experiencing much milder clicking in my TMJ, but like I said, my tinnitus went up.

What helps to lower my tinnitus is trigger point physiotherapy, dry needling, and TECAR therapy.

However, I'd like to get rid of this noise once and for all. I'm almost done with my teeth alignment and I wonder, if I'd get an MRI scan done, would someone (ENT, TM dentist, or jaw surgeon) be able to figure out the possible cause of my tinnitus? Maybe a pinched nerve, scar tissue, a misconfiguration of TMJ, ...

Thanks.

 

MRI can cause or worsen pre-existing tinnitus.

If you opt for undertaking an MRI scan, then you need to make sure to use the most quiet scanners available (do searches here on Tinnitus Talk).

I don't know if medical professionals could pinpoint the reason to your tinnitus by looking at a scan. The idea sounds very speculative. You would have to ask them directly, I think.

 

I had MRI done before, but that was long ago, and nobody I visited checked them (back then I didn't realize yet how big of a difference among doctors can be).

The earplugs, when placed correctly. do their job great and it was a good experience overall. So I'd do it again, that's not a problem.

One ENT told me that she'd be able to see any anomalies, but the MRI should be done with contrast. However, she's very hard to reach, and I can get to her only via super expensive self-paid appointments (after all, she's a world renowned ENT surgeon and specialist, who did some extremely complex surgeries).