How Botox Can Help TMJ

TMJ can be very painful to live with, and many individuals are turning to Botox® to help treat the problem. Your jawbone has a muscle connected to it that acts as a hinge, and it is used to connect it to your skull. This allows your jaw to perform daily functions such as talking, chewing, yawning, and any other movement. 

TMJ is when these muscle dysfunctions will cause pain and discomfort in the area. Some patients describe hearing a clicking noise, or the jaw bone will lock up in some cases. This diagnosis could become very inconvenient over time, and the patient may ask their doctor what options are available to help ease the pain and discomfort. 

A person could have TMJ because of current orthopedic issues, inflammation, or sore muscles. It has been suggested that women can be more affected by this problem than men, and your family genes and age can also add to the causes. There may be no reason at all for this condition to occur in some cases. The important thing is to seek treatment when you feel you have these symptoms. 

Does Botox help treat TMJ?

This type of treatment may be one of the best and most common ways doctors help patients live with their symptoms and help get some relief from the pain of TMJ. 

This type of injection has been known to relieve the symptoms of TMJ. This treatment will cause the muscle in the jaw to disengage and relieve the strain and tension causing the pain. Patients have fewer muscle spasms in their neck, fewer headaches, and reduced teeth grinding as a result of this treatment too. 

You will start to feel the results of this type of treatment within minutes, and many patients will begin to experience the full range of motion rather quickly. 

There are other treatments that your dentist may suggest to treat TMJ. They could put you on medication or discuss physical therapy as a treatment option. 

Possible side effects

There are side effects that some patients have noticed while being treated with Botox for TMJ. You may have headaches or pain at the injection site. Some patients have reported they have noticed their eyelid drooping and flu-like symptoms as well. 

All of these side effects will lessen and go away after time. If you feel your symptoms are worse or not going away, please contact your dentist so they can see you and treat more severe symptoms right away. 

This treatment is becoming more popular because of how fast patients feel the results. This treatment is very safe and has proven to be effective time and time again. 

How much does this treatment cost?

You should call your dental coverage provider and ask if they cover any or all of this treatment. If you are left with an out-of-pocket expense, feel free to discuss payment options or financing with your dental office staff. 

Usually, if your insurance does not cover your treatment, your dental office can offer financing and/or a payment plan to help with the cost. You can call your medical insurance plan as well as your dental insurance plan. Due to the nature of this diagnosis, your medical plan could help cover the cost if it is found to be medically necessary. 

Talk to your dentist

If you feel like you may have TMJ or have pain in the jaw that you can’t explain, always discuss the symptoms with your dentist. Talking to your dentist is one of the main reasons patients need to maintain their routine dental appointments. 

Your six-month visits are where your dentist can find any problems early on so they can be treated before the symptoms become more severe or are past the point where treatment can help. If you keep a good relationship with your dentist, it is more likely that you will feel comfortable talking with them about any problems or questions you have. 

Your dentist can help treat and diagnose a wide range of dental illnesses, but they can only look for problems if they are told about symptoms from their patients. Your dentist knows you best, and they will do whatever they can to help you live a pain-free life when it comes to your oral health. 

Schedule an appointment today if you feel like you are in need of help with any type of pain that you feel may be associated with TMJ. 

Request an appointment here: https://davisanddingle.com or call Davis & Dingle Family Dentistry at (803) 567-1804 for an appointment in our Columbia office.

Check out what others are saying about our dental services on Yelp: TMJ Dentist in Columbia, SC.