Chewing Pain: Cause & Treatment | Schmakel Smile Design

There’s nothing like a night out on the town, especially in Toledo. The city is known far and wide for its long roster of restaurants. But if you experience pain when you chew, a restaurant outing might not be as enjoyable as you’d hoped. Many people, especially seniors, experience tooth and jaw pain when they eat. The problem can be attributed to many factors, including:

Tooth decay, broken and missing teeth
Poorly fitting dentures
Dry mouth
Mouth sores
Mouth cancer
Fractured jaw
Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders
Mouth infections like thrush
Stroke
Chronic diseases like Parkinson’s disease, myasthenia gravis and multiple sclerosis

Fortunately, many of them can be corrected or eased with good dental care.

Jaw Pain Treatment

Generalized jaw and chewing pain may be the result of temporomandibular disorder, or TMD (formerly referred to as TMJ). TMD occurs when the temporomandibular joint – a hinge that connects your jaw to the temporal bones of your skull, which are in front of each ear – is not working as it should. Injury to your jaw, the joint, or the muscles of your head and neck can lead to TMD. Other causes include:

Grinding or clenching your teeth, which puts a lot of pressure on the joint
Movement of the soft cushion or disc between the ball and socket of the joint
Arthritis in the joint
Stress, which can cause you to tighten facial and jaw muscles or clench the teeth

Another reason for jaw pain may be teeth grinding, or bruxism. Bruxism can be caused by stress and anxiety, an abnormal bite, or missing or crooked teeth. It often occurs during sleep and can also be caused by a sleep disorder such as sleep apnea.

Implants & Dentures

When a tooth is severely decayed, broken, or missing, an implant may be the best solution for pain-free chewing and a healthy smile. A dental implant is a replacement for the root of a tooth. It provides a strong foundation for a replacement cap, or crown. Made from titanium, implants are durable and can help prevent bone loss that can occur after tooth loss. Dental implants can also anchor bridges or dentures.

For those who require multiple-tooth replacement, a partial or complete set of dentures may be the answer to pain-free chewing. Partial dentures – or bridges – are used when one or more natural teeth remain in the upper or lower jaw. A fixed bridge replaces one or more teeth by placing crowns on the teeth on either side of the space and attaching artificial teeth to them.

The bridge is then cemented into place. Not only does a partial denture fill in the spaces created by missing teeth, it prevents other teeth from changing position. A precision partial denture is removable and has internal attachments rather than clasps that attach to the adjacent crowns for a very natural look.

Complete dentures – dentures which replace an entire set of teeth – can be either conventional or immediate. Made after the teeth have been removed and the gum tissue has begun to heal, a conventional denture is ready for placement in 8-12 weeks. Unlike conventional dentures, immediate dentures are made in advance and can be positioned as soon as the teeth are removed.

As a result, the wearer does not have to be without teeth during the healing period. However, bones and gums shrink over time, especially during the healing period following tooth removal. So conventional dentures typically require more adjustments to fit properly during the healing process and generally should only be considered a temporary solution until conventional dentures can be made.