Symptoms

Of course, teeth grinding is a symptom that cannot be ignored. The dentist can see the effects of the grinding on grinded teeth. First the canines are affected, then the front teeth and finally the molars. Psychological changes of the child can also be noticed.

Effects and consequences

Teeth grinding and clenching not only affects the teeth, but also the chewing muscles and the jaw joint. This can lead to tension in the chewing muscles and changes in the temporomandibular joint. Broken canines are also caused by strong grinding and pressing of the teeth.

The disease caused by increased grinding and clenching is craniomandibular dysfunction – CMD for short. This term stands for a disharmony of the entire mouth, jaw and jaw joint musculature. The teeth wear out faster due to pressing and grinding facets are formed on the teeth.

Furthermore, the teeth are moved more strongly by the excessive force and can loosen in the tooth socket. The teeth gradually become flatter and flatter, which causes the bite to lower. Furthermore, the muscles tense up due to the overload and can also tend to overstretch.

Due to the lowering of the bite, the temporomandibular joint also no longer has the normal position and can be prone to complaints. The guidance of the head of the joint can be impaired and can result in jaw cracking and pain. If this change is not treated, the head of the temporomandibular joint can wear out more and lead to arthrosis.

This wear and tear of the joint causes a pathological guidance of the joint, which damages the entire joint. It is also associated with very severe pain, which can also reach hardly bearable proportions.In case of complaints, a dentist should be consulted as soon as possible to initiate splint therapy so that an initial crunch cannot develop into a CMD. Due to the increasing pressing and grinding, the teeth receive more load and force than usual.

More load is also applied to the surrounding tissue, the periodontium, which can irritate the tissue. This irritation causes complaints. The patient experiences more pain when chewing and eating.

A mouth opening disorder can also be promoted by the incorrect loading of the teeth and the temporomandibular joint, which is mainly characterized by an unpleasant cracking sound. If the treatment is not carried out, the periodont may be loosened due to the overloading, which may also increase the degree of loosening of the teeth. This makes it easier for bacteria to penetrate into the enlarged pockets and inflame them, which results in a strong inflammatory pain.

The burning pain is accompanied by the typical signs of inflammation such as swelling, redness and functional impairment. In addition, the increasing muscle tension can cause pain radiating into the head, neck and back area. Due to the anatomical proximity, the ear can also cause discomfort and express symptoms of tinnitus.

It is possible that the pain radiates to other regions through crunching. The region of the head is particularly often affected. These headaches can have multiple effects.

They can be piercing, oppressive and only noticeable at certain times of the day. It is difficult for the doctor to find out whether the headache is of dental origin. Teeth grinding can not only cause headaches, it can also lead to migraine attacks.

The radiating pain can trigger and intensify attacks in migraine patients. The relapses can occur at smaller intervals with greater severity. Even in non-migraine patients, these symptoms can trigger migraine symptoms.

If splint therapy is initiated in these patients, the symptoms are very quickly alleviated and in many cases disappear completely. The muscle tensions and hardenings that frequently occur can block areas that are adjacent to or under the muscles. The continuous whistling sound of tinnitus, which occurs suddenly, can be caused by teeth grinding.

The hardening of the musculature can constrict the ear and block structures. Stress also increases the risk of tinnitus and can even intensify symptoms. After successful splint therapy and calming of the living conditions, the symptoms usually disappear completely.

Through crunching, the symptoms of a tension of the muscles in the head, neck area are conceivable, which is not only limited to the mimic and chewing muscles. Due to the anatomical proximity and the cooperation of the individual muscle groups, tension of the neck muscles can also occur. These are particularly unpleasant after getting up and limit the freedom of movement.

Any head movement can therefore cause pain. The neck does not feel soft, and knots can usually be felt. These tensions can also express themselves in a hardening of the muscles.

Massage or red light can relieve these tensions, so that the symptoms disappear. Nevertheless, splint therapy must be initiated in order to localize and heal the cause of the complaints. Pain caused by teeth grinding can radiate from the head via the neck area into the back and cause pain there.

Primarily the upper part of the back is affected, which is anatomically closest to the head. The tension of the chewing muscles is related to tension of the neck muscles and this is accompanied by tension of the upper back. These can spread to the shoulder and manifest themselves as hardenings. The musculature feels stiff and hurts when touched. Knot formation is also possible.