Hi all of my wonderful TMJoiners!
I’m Priya Mistry the TMJ doc and today we're going to be talking about the difference between
a nightguard and a TMJ Orthotic or Splint.
Have you had experience with a dental nightguard? Have you had experience with an over the counter
nightguard - on of those that you can get at the drugstore or the supermarket?
Have you had experience with neither? Or both? Do you know what the difference
is between a nightguard and a TMJ Orthotic? If not or if
you want the answers to some of these questions and more, please watch this video until the end.
Before we get into it, be sure to check out my social media.
The accounts are linked below as well as my office website. My office website has tons of information
on there as well, so be sure to check that out or give us a call to schedule an appointment.
For those of you who don’t know me, I’m
a general dentist with a practice in beautiful Vancouver,
Washington where we are dedicated to taking care of patients with TMJ disorders.
So let’s get right into it!
First let’s start by going over some terminology so that as I move forward in this video,
everything I'm saying is very clear to you. So when I say over the counter nightguard - I’m
referring to one you can get at the drugstore, the pharmacy, or a supermarket,
and you sort of take it home, and mold it, and make it fit.
When I say dental nightguard, I’m referring to one made specifically for you by your dentist.
When I say TMJ orthotic or splint, I’m referring to an appliance made by a dentist to treat
TMJD.
It can be confusing because a TMJ orthotic or splint and a dental nightguard can
LOOK similar, but they function very differently. So getting
the terminology correct right now will be helpful in understanding this video later on.
Additionally, the words splint and orthotic can be used interchangeably so just to keep
it simple and easy, in this video I'll be saying "orthotic" rather than "splint".
In this video I'll be going over the differences between an over the counter nightguard - one
you can get at a store - a dental nightguard - one made for you by your dentist - and
a TMJ orthotic
- one made by your dentist to treat TMJ Disorder.
Let’s start with the over the counter nightguard.
Over the counter nightguards are also called “boil and bites” because you can literally
take them home and boil them, and the sort of bite into them and mold them to fit.
These are great at protecting your teeth from the forces of clenching and grinding,
but that’s about all that they do. To be very clear,
an over the counter nightguard will not treat a TMJ Disorder effectively.
Most people get over the counter nightguards to wear as protection
from injury from wearing sports as well, so that's just another thing to keep in mind.
Many of these over the counter nightguards can be uncomfortable
because they're big and they're bulky and their made to fit every mouth size - from Shaquille
O’Neal size to the rest of us, so they can be bulky and uncomfortable and really hard to
tolerate. I know many people that have tried these. They paid maybe $30 or $40 for them
and they just couldn't tolerate them so they ended up throwing them away
or just leaving them unused on their nightstands.
Let's move on to a dental nightguard. A dental nightguard is generally much more
comfortable and that's because it's a custom fit. Molds or scans are taken of the upper and lower
teeth and these records are then sent to a lab and the lab sends back a custom fit nightguard. These
dental nightguards typically fit on the upper arch - so they fit all the teeth across the upper arch.
Now there are different designs for dental nightguards. There are also some that fit only in
the front to prevent the back teeth from touching, there are some that fit on the lower arch,
but what I see most commonly are the ones that fit on the upper arch and cover all of the teeth.
A dental nightguard, like an over the counter nightguard, is very good at protecting the
teeth from the forces of clenching and grinding,
but it does NOT treat the muscles or the jaw joints.
So let me repeat that - a dental nightguard does NOT treat the dysfunctional muscles
or the dysfunctional jaw joints that contribute to TMJD! So what does?
This brings us to a TMJ orthotic or TMJ splint. Like I said, I'll be using the word "orthotic".
A TMJ orthotic is also a custom fit.
Molds or scans are taken of the teeth.
And the next step - what's done next - is what sets a TMJ orthotic
apart from a dental nightguard and an over the counter nightguard.
The next step involves finding and recording the optimal position of the jaw in relation
to the teeth.
So this also bears repeating - the optimal position of the jaw is found and recorded!
This recorded position as well as the records of the teeth as well
are used in fabricating a TMJ orthotic.
So then when it's worn, it's actually the holding the jaw in a different position.
It's a true orthotic - like you would wear one in your shoe to correct hip alignment, a TMJ
orthotic is worn on top of the teeth to correct jaw alignment while worn. Another way to look at
this is that when worn, a TMJ orthotic actually changes the relationship between the upper arch
and the lower arch, making it more optimal and more favorable for the muscles and the joints.
When the jaw is held in that optimal position for a significant amount
of time, good things tend to happen. We typically see
pain go down pretty drastically within a month,
month and a half and typically see jaw joint noises go down as well over time.
These orthotics are very effective on their
own to treat TMJD, but at my office I also do myofascial
release and osteopathic manual jaw manipulation every couple weeks for most of my patients.
In addition to that, I also adjust the orthotics as we go along. The orthotic
itself - this device that my patients wear - that cannot change, but every individual can.
And as the muscles get to a healthier state, as the joints get to a healthier state,
we have to adjust the orthotics as we go along to support and keep up with the body's changes.
This modality of treatment - the orthotics, the
myofascial release, the osteopathic manual jaw manipulation, and
checking the orthotics & adjusting them frequently - has proven
to be very effective and we have a 90% success
rate at my office for treating TMJD.
For more information, please watch my most recent video
“How I Treat TMJD”, which I’ve linked both
above and below.
So that’s really it my friends!
Again, I’m Dr. Priya Mistry and I hope you found this video helpful.
If so, please feel free to like, Subscribe, and share with your family and friends.
For TMJD relief from the comfort of your own home, please download my free PDF Guide called
“3 Steps to TMJD Relief”.
You can find this on my office website, which I've linked
below.
This guide includes easy, quick, at-home remedies that will help you feel relief from the pain
that comes along with TMJD!
As always, questions and comments are welcome below.
Have you had experience with a dental nightguard?
Have you had experience with an over the counter nightguard? If so, tell me about it!
I’d love to hear from you!
And remember, my friends, you can never have TMI about TMJ! Thank you!
Thank you!