If you suffer from unexplainable pain in your jaw area or around your temples, then temporomandibular disorder (TMJ) may be to blame. TMJ is a problem that affects the muscles and joints we use to chew, often making tasks as simple as eating and speaking painful experiences. Many people – up to 30% of adults – suffer from this disorder which often goes undiagnosed for a long time.
Although TMJ can be mildly discomforting at best and extremely painful at worst, the condition usually isn’t too serious, but is definitely treatable. Modern Family Dentists LLC can provide a number of treatment therapies to help alleviate the pain and reduced quality of life caused by from TMJ.
Be sure to make an appointment with us if you experience any of the following symptoms:
- Popping, grating or clicking noises when you move your mouth, such as when chewing or eating
- Muscle pain around your temple and/or jaw
- Pain in front of your ear that spreads to the ear, cheek and temple
- Difficulty in opening your mouth
- Headaches/migraines – especially around the temples
- Earache or the sensation of your ears being blocked
- Pain in other seemingly unassociated areas such as neck or backache
These symptoms of TMJ can lead to further unwanted conditions, such as unintentional weight loss from an inability to eat, or disturbed sleep.
What causes temporomandibular disorder?
There are many possible causes of TMJ, such as:
- Bruxism – grinding your teeth or clenching your jaw during sleep. This causes your jaw muscles to overwork, putting pressure on the joint.
- Osteoarthritis – the wear and tear of the jaw joint caused by osteoarthritis of the jaw can lead to TMJ.
- Jaw injury – TMJ could be a symptom of an injury to the jaw such as facial surgery or a blow to the face.
- Stress – this can cause your jaw muscles to become tense
- Unknown causes – unfortunately, there are some cases where TMD happens without any obvious cause.
How do Modern Family Dentists treat TMJ?
When you come to us to treat your TMJ, we will fully assess you and create a fully customized treatment plan to suit your specific needs.
We use a treatment called Bite Therapy which helps us to analyze your jaw and provide the best treatment for you. Using the specific exercises we provide for you to perform at home, you will be on your way to correcting your bite and living your life pain-free.
If you suffer from any of the symptoms associated with temporomandibular disorder, make sure to schedule an appointment with Modern Family Dentists LLC today. You’ll love the personal care and attention we’re famed for in the Kenosha area, and you’ll quickly return to chewing and speaking without the pain.
Financing
Think you can’t afford quality dental care? Think again! We believe quality dental care should be available to everyone, and that is why Modern Family Dentists LLC provide a variety of financing options for many levels of care.
We accept most dental insurance plans to finance your treatment. However, life often gets in the way of many things, and for many people, setting up a dental dental insurance plan can often be put on the backburner or simply forgotten about.
No dental insurance? No Problem!
Many people only remember they don’t have a dental insurance plan in place until they need treatment, and then think they can’t afford the treatment they deserve. Or, they simply don’t see dental insurance as a financial necessity and choose not to set up an insurance plan. Whatever the reason may be, our financing options can ensure you receive the quality dental care you deserve at a price that’s right for you.
Modern Family Dentists takes care of life’s many obstacles by offering our own dental insurance plan finance:
The Modern Family Dentists Benefit Plan
We know how important it is to receive quality dental care, and that’s why we want to make treatment affordable to all. When you enrol on The Modern Family Dentists LLC Benefit Plan, you can get up to 30-50% off average dental fees in the Kenosha area. Membership for one person is $197 annually and covers exam fees and x-rays for all your visits.
Receive treatment now and pay later with Care Credit
Even if you don’t yet have an insurance plan in place and need treatment right away, we can still help. We offer a service called Care Credit which lets you receive treatment right away, and pay it off later in affordable monthly installments.
Whether your current dental insurance plan cannot cover the full cost of your treatment, or you don’t have any dental insurance in place at all, The Modern Family Dentists LLC Benefit Plan and our Care Credit plan can help you to receive the dental treatment you deserve.
We can accept all major credit cards: Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover Network Cards to allow you to make affordable monthly installments to cover the cost of any dental treatment from us.
Friendly Advice
When you come to Modern Family Dentists LLC for your dental treatment, we will always explain all the costs involved, what costs your insurance will cover, and what will remain – all before your appointment. That means you don’t have to wait nervously and wonder what the bill will amount to during your treatment. Everything is explained thoroughly so you know exactly what to expect.
Whether your current dental insurance plan cannot cover the full cost of your treatment, or you don’t have any dental insurance in place at all, The Modern Family Dentists LLC Benefit Plan and our Care Credit plan can help you to receive the dental treatment you deserve – because Smiles Change Outcomes.
Prophylaxis
Although it looks and sounds like a big scary word, ’prophylaxis’’ actually just the technical term for ‘prevention is better than cure’.
In dental terms, this means having your teeth cleaned regularly to prevent plaque and tartar buildup that can damage your teeth and gums.
Daily brushing and flossing is important, but regular dental checkups and cleanings are necessary to remove any built up plaque and tartar that these methods cannot reach.
Plaque and tartar build-ups can lead to:
- Gingivitis – this is when plaque builds up around the gingival tissues (the area of gums right by the teeth) and causes them to become inflamed and irritated, which can be very painful. This can eventually lead to:
- Periodontitis – when gingivitis becomes too bad, it can cause the gums to become infected, leading to tooth damage and deterioration of the jawbone around the infected area.
- Tooth loss – if periodontitis is prolonged, it can cause destruction of the gums, teeth and the affected jawbone area. Sometimes teeth can be repaired using a variety of methods, but too much damage will lead to a tooth extraction.
These are only a few examples of the immediate complications caused by the buildup of plaque and tartar. While these conditions are treatable, preventing them from happening in the first place is always better than treating them if they happen. That is why we always recommend regular dental visits to ensure plaque that is unreachable through brushing and flossing is removed during checkups.
The tools on the tray may look scary to you, but they are only there to scrape and dislodge the tartar and plaque from your teeth and around your gums. These tools remove excess food and bacteria build up that regular brushing does not.
At Modern Family Dentists, we cannot overstate the importance of regular dental check-up appointments to keep your teeth clean, but we are also very aware of the fear many patients have of visiting their dentist.
We provide a variety of sedation options that can help put your mind at ease, and will always guide you through all processes to make your experience at Modern Family Dentists LLC as positive as possible.
Give us a call today to schedule your regular cleaning or to talk about sedation dentistry. Modern Family Dentists LLC offer a variety of payment plans and options, and we accept most insurance plans to help Smiles Change Outcomes.
Mouth Guards
At Modern Family Dentists LLC we like to think that learning something new every day is important. Today we are going to teach you something you may not know about mouth guards. They aren’t just for sports! They aren’t even just for grinding your teeth anymore.
While mouth guards serve both of those purposes extremely well, they also can help alleviate jaw pain while you sleep! For people who suffer from TMJ disorders or Temporomandibular disorders, a condition where you experience jaw and neck pain along with teeth grinding and sometimes even clicking noises when opening or closing the jaw, mouth guards can be a life saver.
Mouth guards are a piece of flexible, or sometimes hard plastic that is shaped to fit your bite. It keeps space between your teeth and can absorb shock and friction, either from a hit to a helmet or from jaw clenching or grinding. Those last two are two of the leading causes of TMJ disorders.
Wearing a mouth guard at night if you experience any of the symptoms of TMJ disorders can help you for longer than just the night. The effects of not grinding your teeth overnight last well into the day, especially if you and Dr. Aust come up with a stretching and strengthening program to help ease the symptoms of TMJ disorders.
Come schedule an appointment today to get fitted for a mouth guard and talk with Dr. Aust. You may find there is an explanation for your neck and jaw pain that you never knew existed!