Jaw Pain: Causes, Treatment & Help

The jaw joint is one of the most stressed joints. It is always involved when eating, speaking, yawning. Sometimes, more or less severe jaw pain occurs, affecting sufferers in eating, drinking and speaking.

What is jaw pain?

Jaw pain refers to all types of pain that affect the jaw apparatus and are treated differently depending on their causes. Jaw pain refers to all types of pain that affect the jaw apparatus and are treated differently depending on their causes. Jaw pain is a torment for those affected. They usually persist for weeks, if not months. They interfere with chewing, speaking and even drinking. Most people then instinctively reach for painkillers, however a quick trip to the dentist would usually be much more appropriate to get rid of the pain. The jaw itself, which triggers the discomfort, is known to be divided into upper and lower jaws. Differentially, jaw pain should also be thought of a jaw fracture or jaw malposition.

Causes

One of the main causes of jaw pain is nighttime grinding. This causes the teeth to be pressed against each other, the chewing surfaces of the teeth to become severely worn, and the muscles of mastication to be overly stressed. Viral or bacterial inflammation can be to blame for jaw pain, when viruses or bacteria spread to the jaw via the gums and cause severe discomfort there due to the inflammation. Inflammation of the gum pockets can also spread to the jaw through the roots and cause severe jaw pain. A decayed tooth can form a focal point of pus, a fistula, at the root. This focus spreads to the jaw and causes jaw pain. If not treated, complications such as heart problems or kidney disease can follow and these organs can be severely damaged. Misaligned teeth often lead to severe jaw pain, often originating from wisdom teeth pushing against other teeth from the jaw. A malocclusion can also cause persistent jaw pain as can muscle tension in the jaw or head area. Sudden jaw pain can also be a warning sign of a heart attack, especially if it occurs in the lower jaw area and the pain radiates to the left arm.

Diseases with this symptom

  • Caries
  • Heart attack
  • Tonsillitis

Diagnosis and course

Most jaw pain belongs in the hands of a doctor, dentist or orthodontist. For milder TMJ symptoms, such as those caused by grinding, a visit to the dentist is all that is needed to determine the cause. The dentist will look at the teeth, take an X-ray, refer to the orthodontist if necessary, if the complaints are due to more serious malocclusions. Jaw pain below individual teeth or dental fistulas are diagnosed during an examination of the dentition by a dentist who takes an x-ray showing the extent of the inflammation. If a heart attack is suspected, the emergency physician should be called immediately and the affected person should be appropriately positioned and sedated. The emergency physician will perform an ECG and refer the patient to the nearest hospital, where a comprehensive ECG and initiation of treatment and monitoring will be performed in the intensive care unit.

Complications

Jaw pain often requires consultation with a dentist. For many people, the very thought of this causes anxiety and panic. They become hysterical and need psychological support. If they avoid visiting the dentist because of the fear, the pain spreads. The mood is lowered and irritability sets in. The jaw pain often leads to impaired swallowing. Food intake and fluid intake are reduced. Weight loss occurs. In severe cases, life-threatening complications threaten with an eating disorder or dehydration. Jaw pain is experienced as particularly intense. When taking painkillers, there is a risk of side effects, such as gastrointestinal problems, or developing an addiction. The pain often leads to insomnia. Jaw pain often triggers headaches and tension in the neck as well as the back of the neck. Treatment can last for several weeks. The pain may increase in intensity during this time.Not always the jaw pain is completely cured. If the jaw is misaligned, surgical interventions are possible. Wearing braces only leads to changes in the long term over several years. In addition, there is an optical blemish. This is experienced as emotionally stressful, especially by patients who are in an adult age.

When should one go to the doctor?

Jaw pain should always be clarified by a specialist. This is especially true in cases of particularly severe pain that radiates to the head and persists over a long period of time. A visit to the doctor is also recommended in the case of speech disorders or if swelling or inflammation in the jaw area can be observed to accompany the pain. If extreme speech and chewing problems occur, an orthodontist must also be consulted. The cause may be a maloccluded wisdom tooth, which can be quickly removed with medical assistance. Carious teeth are also easy to treat. If left untreated, however, they can cause heart problems and kidney disease. Often, the complaints are also based on a harmless tension, which can be treated by simple therapeutic measures. Acute, very severe jaw pain should be treated by an orthodontist or dentist. Patients with pre-existing conditions or malocclusions should discuss any abnormalities in the jaw area with their family doctor. This also applies if no clear cause for the complaints can be found. If there is severe pain in the lower jaw that radiates to the left arm, the emergency services must be called immediately.

Treatment and therapy

The treatment of jaw pain depends on the causes. For tension-related jaw pain, it is sufficient to loosen and relax the jaw through appropriate relaxation exercises or more frequent breaks. Malocclusions are corrected by the orthodontist with braces (brackets) that correct the malocclusions. Pain pills should only ever be a short-term solution. Bacterial inflammations are cured with an antibiotic so that the inflammation does not spread to the jaw and from there to other organs. If a dental fistula has formed on a decayed tooth, the dentist first tries to heal the inflammation with an antibiotic. If that doesn’t help, an apicoectomy is performed to drain the fistula or, as a last resort, the tooth is extracted if all else fails. A heart attack is always treated in a hospital. The affected person is transferred to the intensive care unit and monitored there around the clock. Depending on the cause and extent of the heart attack, stents, bypasses are placed or surgery is performed.

Outlook and prognosis

For jaw pain, it is generally necessary to get to the bottom of the cause. But for acute treatment, patients can also do something themselves. Often, jaw pain is the result of grinding the teeth at night. In this case, a grinding splint fitted by the dentist is helpful. Heat can lead to a reduction in pain in the area of the jaw. Moist, warm washcloths or infrared radiation are suitable. Red light should only be used at a distance of 30 cm. A warm full bath can relax the whole body and thus reduce jaw pain. The more the jaw muscles are relieved, the better. Pain patients should chew as little as possible and avoid long speech. Speaking with the mouth wide open is also not conducive to jaw pain. All balancing activities that distract from the daily grind or stressful activities are relaxing and can also reduce pain. Health insurance companies and adult education centers offer numerous relaxation courses. Light exercise helps relieve tension. Jaw discomfort is not infrequently caused by muscle stiffness. Light exercises such as jaw circling are then helpful. Neck tension also often leads to jaw pain. Simple exercises such as interlacing the hands in the neck and pressing against the back of the head can loosen the neck again. Direct pain point treatment on the outer cheek can also provide relief. The pain point is located just in front of the ear, between the edge of the lower jaw and the zygomatic bone.

Prevention

Jaw pain cannot always be completely avoided. When tension is present, it often helps to reduce stress in order to relax the tense muscles.Serious malocclusions must be corrected by extensive orthodontic measures. Regular prophylaxis at least once a year and a healthy diet that is not too high in sugar help against tooth decay. A healthy and not too stressful lifestyle helps to reduce the risk of heart attack, because stress leads to high blood pressure and damages the heart. Dental fistulas can be prevented by regular dental visits and a healthy diet. For nighttime grinding, a bite splint made by a dentist can help.

What you can do yourself

If jaw pain occurs after a visit to the dentist, it does not need to be treated directly. Especially after the removal of wisdom teeth, severe jaw pain can occur. These usually disappear after a few days. The patient can take painkillers and cool the affected area. If, in addition to the jaw pain, other symptoms such as headache, nausea or vomiting occur, a dentist should be consulted. In this case, it is an infection. Painkillers should not be taken for a long time, as they can cause damage to the stomach. If the jaw pain is felt mainly after waking up in the morning, this may be due to teeth grinding. In this case, it is helpful to have a dental splint made by the dentist, with which the night grinding can be prevented. This also relieves the jaw and it no longer hurts. It is not uncommon for jaw pain to occur due to hard food or overuse of the jaw. Stress can also contribute to jaw pain. Patients should consciously reduce stress in their daily lives and relax the jaw by eating soft foods. Often the tension of the jaw happens subconsciously. Here, the patient himself must take care to relax the jaw at these moments. For this purpose, the tongue can be placed under the front teeth.