Neuromuscular Dentistry

Offering neuromuscular dentistry to patients throughout Boston,
Braintree, and Massachusetts' South Shore.

• What is TMJ?

TMJ Treatment

Many people suffer from a range of symptoms that are associated with TMJ disorders (temporomandibular joint). These symptoms may include migraine headaches, tension headaches, neck and shoulder pain, jaw and facial pain, limited jaw movement, clicking or popping noise in the jaw joints, ringing in the ears, or tingling in the fingertips. Many people do not realize that muscles play an important role in dental health.

The science of Neuromuscular Dentistry (NMD) evaluates and treats your overall oral health by considering how the muscles of the head and neck, teeth and jaw joints all work together.

To understand NMD, it helps to first know a few things about your occlusion or "bite". Your occlusion is the way that your upper and lower teeth fit together.

The muscles of your head and neck posture your jaw and hold the lower teeth close to the upper ones. Even though your present bite position "programmed" by your brain seems like it would be the optimal position, it is not always the best one for you. Improper posture of the muscles can lead to bite problems, muscle pain, headaches, jaw pain, and joint problems (TMJ).

The neuromuscular approach determines where your optimal bite position is when all of the muscles associated with chewing are in their most comfortable and relaxed position. This is accomplished utilizing the Myotronics K-7 for computerized jaw tracking and electromyography to measure muscle function. Treatment may only require recontouring the enamel of your teeth to adjust your bite to hold the optimal position, or it may require the fabrication of a clear plastic appliance that is worn to maintain the correct bite position. Sometimes it may be necessary to change the position of the teeth by wearing braces or changing the shape of the teeth with porcelain restorations.