Hi Friends and welcome or welcome back to my YouTube channel! I’m Priya Mistry the TMJ doc
and today I’m going to talk to you about neck pain and TMJ Disorders - is neck pain related
to TMJD? Can neck issues cause TMJ issues? Can TMJ issues cause neck issues? If you watch this
video until the end, YOU will have the answers to these questions and more! That being said,
if you’re looking for more information on TMJ Disorders for yourself or for a loved one,
then this is the YouTube channel for you. Be sure to hit that Subscribe button as I post
a new informational video every Friday for people who are suffering from TMJD! PAUSE.
For those of you who don’t know me, I’m a general dentist with a practice in Portland, Oregon where
we are dedicated to taking care of patients with TMJ disorders. I practice here with my mentor, Dr.
Arthur L Parker. Please check out the links below if you want to hang out with me on my other social
media platforms, especially Instagram. I post lots of useful information about TMJ disorders,
tips, trivia, muscle releases and massages that you can do on yourself at home for relief,
and more.. so all of you who like to geek out on this TMJ stuff like I do,
be sure to check out my other social media platforms.
So let’s get right into it! Let me start by saying very clearly that there is a direct
and intimate relationship between the neck and the jaw. So YES - neck issues are often related to jaw
issues. We see this in our office with many of our patients. Neck problems can feed up and cause
or exacerbate jaw problems and jaw problems can feed down and cause or exacerbate neck
problems. This makes total sense because the jaw and neck are literally right next to each other!
If there are dysfunctional muscles in the jaw, then these tight, tense,
dysfunctional muscles will then put strain and stress on the muscles of the neck and vice versa.
Now let's talk about which neck muscles are directly related to TMJ Disorders?
Let’s start with the Sternocleidomastoid - also called the SCM. The SCM is a large muscle that
starts at the mastoid process which is the bony hump behind our earlobes. It then extends down
to the collarbone or the clavicle, and the sternum - which is the bone at the center of our chests.
This muscle is a key player in neck mobility and the range of motion of the neck and is ALSO
a spot where people hold a lot of tension! When this muscle is dysfunctional or it's too tense,
it puts undue pressure - too much pressure - on the mastoid process,
which is part of the temporal bone, which is part of the Temporomandibular
Joint. It’s ALL connected folks! This undue pressure on the muscles and bones can lead to pain
and it can lead ear-related problems, such as vertigo.
Other muscles that are involved are the suboccipital group of muscles. These are literally
just muscles on the back of our heads - down here, the base of our heads, the base of our skulls.
These muscles attach to C1, which is also called Atlas. That is the first cervical vertebra. In
ancient Greek mythology, Atlas was the Titan that held the weight of the heavens on our shoulders.
Similarly, C1 - our Atlas - holds the significant weight of our heads. So C1,
or Atlas, literally holds our heads up and is therefore a very important bone! When this
first cervical vertebra, Atlas, is misaligned, tilted, rotated, or laterally shifted,
it then puts stress or strain on the suboccipital group of muscles. This then puts strain on the
occipital bone which is attached to the temporal bone which is part of the Temporomandibular Joint.
Misalignments of C1 - or Atlas - can therefore lead to pain or TMJ issues.
Other groups of muscles that attach to C1 or Atlas include the splenius capitis group of muscles,
the erector spinae group of muscles, and more! There are numerous muscles that are affected
by misalignment of these upper cervical vertebrae. These misalignments can all
cause strain to the bones and muscles of the head, neck, and jaw leading to TMJ issues.
Now let’s talk about how to treat misaligned cervical vertebrae. For this, we work with
upper cervical chiropractors - also called NUCCA Chiropractors or Atlas Orthogonal Chiropractors.
These chiropractors have taken additional training in adjusting the upper cervical vertebrae and do
so WITHOUT forceful, high-velocity, or cracking manipulations. To find out more about this,
please watch my video called “What is a NUCCA Chiropractor?” We typically utilize the skills of
these upper cervical chiropractors in our patients whose jaws are locked closed. For more information
on this, please watch my videos “Jaw Locked Closed Part 1" and "Jaw Locked Closed Part 2". For
patients whose jaws are NOT locked closed, we can typically take care of them in our office without
utilizing the skills of our trusted upper cervical chiropractors. Having said that, keep in mind that
there are exceptions to this as each patient is an individual and responds differently to treatment.
So that’s really it my friends. I hope this video helped to explain the connection between the neck
and the jaw! There IS an intimate relationship between the neck and the jaw and treating BOTH
areas of dysfunction can be vital for some of my TMJD patients! If you like
what you heard or if you learned something new, click “Like” below,
Subscribe to my channel, do all the things! As always, questions and comments are welcome in
the comment box below. And remember my friends, you can never have TMI about TMJ! Thank you!