Bruxism is the medical term used to refer to chronic teeth grinding. Many things can make a person grind, such as stress, depression, and fatigue. The repeated clenching of the jaw muscle causes tension and pain in the shoulders, neck, face, and ears. Eventually, sufferers can experience continued severe physical discomfort. In addition, the habit causes extensive damage to the teeth.
Underlying Causes of Bruxism
Often there is no real underlying cause for bruxism. Unfortunately, it simply becomes an unconscious habit that can occur when awake or asleep.
On rare occasions, teeth clenching might occur because of the following:
● Medications: Bruxism is a side effect of certain prescription medications. If you start to suffer from the condition because of medication, you should ask your doctor to prescribe a different medication version.
● Sleep Disorders: Sometimes, addressing the sleep disorders associated with bruxism can fix the problem. Sleep apnea is often associated with bruxism.
● Medical Conditions: Certain medical conditions such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) can cause bruxism and treating the problem can improve or stop teeth clenching.
Treating Teeth Clenching
Historically, physicians have turned to mouth guards, physical therapy, biofeedback, meditation, and anti-anxiety medications to treat patients with bruxism. But unfortunately, most treatments have not proven very successful.
Anti-Wrinkle Injections to Treat Bruxism
Recent treatment breakthroughs focus on using anti-wrinkle injections into the masseter muscle to treat teeth grinding and ease the headaches caused by the constant clenching and unclenching of the large muscle.
A single injection often brings relief for up to four months. Then, in some cases, the muscle starts to atrophy, so fewer seasons are needed and often become unnecessary in time.
The anti-wrinkle injections focus on the problematic jaw muscles and leave the surrounding muscles unimpaired so your jaw will continue to function without any problems. Interestingly, many people report that their jaw starts to work better after the product injections because they are finally pain-free and can chew unhindered by discomfort.
Bruxism is a Serious Condition
Many people don’t consider teeth clenching a severe condition, primarily if they are sleeping. Many people don’t even realise they grind their teeth when asleep. The only clues that there is a problem include sore jaw muscles, headaches, or teeth problems.
Left untreated, tooth wear can become so severe that the teeth cannot chew and overly sensitive to heat/cold. Sometimes a dentist needs to reshape the chewing surface of the teeth or crown them to repair the damage caused by bruxism.
If you suffer from bruxism and you have exhausted all other treatment options, then maybe it’s time to consider the highly effective use of anti-wrinkle injections. At LSV, we offer injections to treat teeth clenching. Please contact us today to schedule a consultation to discuss your options.
