How to Clean a Night Guard

One of our specialties at Alta Loma Dental Care is providing customized night guards for patients with obstructive sleep apnea. Also called snore guards, night guards are removable oral appliances that keep the teeth apart during the patient’s sleep so they won’t rub together. They also reposition the jaw to help keep the patient’s airways open. But as with any oral appliance, bacteria will build up on the night guard unless it is kept clean.

Nightguard manufacturers also make cleaning solutions and other hygiene products they advertise on their website. These products are often of high quality, but the patient should still brush the appliance after removing it each morning. A soft-bristled toothbrush will remove the bacterial film that develops in the patient’s mouth. However, the patient should not use toothpaste on the night guard, as the gritty minerals are likely to scratch its soft plastic and do not provide any benefit.

Unlike dentures, some night guards are meant to be kept dry when not in use. But regardless of how they are stored, the case should be cleaned every day with antibacterial soap. It’s also important to keep the case away from anything too hot and out of sunlight because the night guard’s shape could be distorted. A patient’s teeth may migrate naturally over time, which would require the night guard to be adjusted, but patients should not attempt to do this on their own.

Alta Loma Dental Care is at 7283 Carnelian St, Alta Loma, California, 91701. To schedule an appointment, call 909-987-6268 or visit Alta Loma Dental Care and fill out a contact sheet.

 

What Is TMD?

The temporomandibular joint is a hinge that connects your jaw bone (mandible) to the temporal bones in your skull, in front of each ear.  A general term for any problem or issue with this joint is temporomandibular disorder, or TMD. The doctors of Alta Loma Dental Care help patients prevent and recover from negative effects of TMD.

Patients that grind or clench their teeth often end up with a sore jaw.  Other patients experience injuries with facial trauma that cause jaw pain, or result in the patient feeling their jaw gets stuck or ‘locks’ in either an open or closed position.  A custom night guard keeps the jaw in a neutral position during sleep, and this helps many patients find relief from TMD symptoms.  For any pain, your dentist may recommend an over-the-counter painkiller or warm and cold compresses.  To prevent further discomfort, you may be assigned stretches for your jaw.  Whatever your symptoms, you don’t have to suffer with discomfort in your jaw.  Contact us for help today.

To learn more about TMD and the services provided at the practice, visit www.altalomadentalcare.com for more information. To schedule an appointment in our Alta Loma, CA office, call Alta Loma Dental Care at 909-987-6268. 

What does Snoring have to do with Jaw Pain?

When people are suffering from jaw pain, they’re right to go to their dentist for help. What they may not know is that a dentist can also help with their snoring. At Alta Loma Dental Care, we treat obstructive sleep apnea and want our patients to understand how it is related to temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJD).

The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is a very complex structure. It connects the lower jaw with the head and is responsible for its full range of motion. A healthy TMJ must be able to absorb all the forces put on it during chewing.  When a person suffers from sleep apnea, their body often attempts to keep their airways open by moving the jaw around at night, which is called bruxism. This can cause wear and tear on the teeth in addition to subjecting the TMJ to additional stress. An injury to it can cause pain to be felt anywhere from the head to the shoulder. When it is sore, a patient may not be able to open their mouth or hear clicking noises when they do.

We provide night guards which hold a person’s teeth in place during sleep. This reduces the damage of bruxism and eliminates the body’s incentive to move the jaw at night.

Alta Loma Dental Care is at 7283 Carnelian St, Alta Loma, California, 91701. To schedule an appointment, call 909-987-6268 or visit Alta Loma Dental Care and fill out a contact sheet.

 

TMJ Exercises

TMD is a condition that affects the TMJs, causing pain, stiffness, and a lot of frustration. Here at Alta Loma Dental Care in Alta Loma, CA, we can provide experienced and effective treatment for TMD. These exercises may also help with relaxing your jaw and increasing range of motion. However, if any of these exercises make the pain worse, do not continue.

Relax

To help relax your jaw, smile the biggest, widest smile as you can while keeping your jaw open about two inches. Hold this post for five seconds and then release. You can do this exercise several times until you begin to feel your jaw and facial muscles relax.

Strengthen

This exercise will help strengthen the ligaments around your jaw and it will help relax the muscles you use to close your mouth. Close your mouth, keeping your teeth together, but not clenched. Place the tip of your tongue on the roof of your mouth, right behind your front teeth. Move your tongue backwards until the tip touches your soft palate. Gently and slowly open your mouth until your tongue is separated from the soft palate. Keep your mouth open for five seconds and then close your mouth. Repeat this exercise slowly for five minutes.

Stretch

To stretch your tight jaw, start with your mouth closed but with your teeth slightly parted. Place your thumb under your chin and apply gentle pressure. With your thumb creating pressure, open your mouth. Do this exercise ten times. Gradually, you will notice you can open your mouth comfortable more and more.

If you notice you are having difficulties with your TMJs, be sure to schedule an appointment with us for help. To schedule at Alta Loma Dental Care in Alta Loma, CA, call us at (909) 987-6268 or visit our website, www.altalomadentalcare.com. 

Foods to Avoid with TMJ Dysfunction

When dealing with TMJ, it can be frustrating at first. It helps to know what can trigger or prolong pain. At Alta Loma Dental Care in Alta Loma, CA, we want our patients suffering with TMJ to know what foods to avoid.

Crunchy foods like chips and popcorn can be very aggravating to the TMJs. Hard foods like raw vegetables can also irritate the TMJs because of how much force the jaw uses to bite through them. However, since veggies are an important part of your diet, try cooking them so they become softer and easier to chew.

Chewy foods are another type of food that should be avoided when you have TMJ dysfunction. The constant chewing motion and the amount of pressure needed to chew through these foods can cause inflammation. Avoid chewing gum, sticky candies, and tougher cuts of meats and seafood. If you want seafood, choose a more tender option like fish. Meats should also be tender.

Cutting your food into smaller pieces will also help, as overextending the jaw sometimes triggers TMJ pain. To schedule an appointment at Alta Loma Dental Care in Alta Loma, CA, call our office at (909) 987-6268 or visit our website, www.altalomadentalcare.com. 

Treatment for TMJ Disorders at Alta Loma Dental Care

TMJ is an abbreviation for temporomandibular joint, which is the joint that connects your mandible (lower jaw) to your skull at the temporal bone. While many call disorders associated with this joint, TMJ, those disorders are more appropriately called TMD (temporomandibular disorder), and TMD can have symptoms that range from teeth grinding and headaches to trouble chewing and pain when opening and closing your mouth. TMD is not only an annoying disorder; it is also a destructive one and can cause serious damage to your teeth if left untreated. At our office in Alta Loma, CA, Dr. Michael Kim can determine if you suffer from TMD and offer ways to treat the disorder.

The TMJ controls an assortment of jaw functions, including chewing, so if you’re chewing muscles or the joint itself is in pain, it is possible that you have TMD. TMD is often caused by stress, which leads to unconscious clenching and teeth grinding while awake and asleep. The disorder’s symptoms include pain, trouble chewing, lock jaw, headaches or ear pain and a popping or clicking sound when opening your mouth. However, these symptoms may be indicative of other health problems as well, so it is important to see a medical professional for a diagnosis.

Grinding your teeth is an especially worrisome TMD-associated behavior since it can lead to further problems with your mouth. If your teeth grinding is left unaddressed, you will cause serious wear to the enamel of your teeth and expose the dentin, which will make your teeth more sensitive to heat and cold and more susceptible to decay. However, you can work with Dr. Kim to relieve symptoms with mouth guards or night guards.

If you think that you might be suffering from TMD or teeth grinding, schedule an appointment at Alta Loma Dental Care by calling (909) 987-6268. For more information, visit www.altalomadentalcare.com.

TMJ and Your Health

Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction is a group of conditions that cause pain and dysfunction in the jaw joint and the muscles that control jaw movement. Your temporomandibular joint controls how the jaw functions and any pain in the area may cause jaw joint problems known as temporomandibular disorder (TMD). At Alta Loma Dental Care, we offer treatment options for patients suffering from this condition.

 

For most, small amounts of pain in the jaw do not signal a serious problem. Generally, the pain is infrequent and brief. But for those that develop significant, long-term symptoms, treatment should be sought. There really is no cure for TMJ; at best patients suffering from TMJ can only hope to manage the pain.

 

If you are suffering from TMJ, you are probably in constant pain. Your face, jaw and neck often ache and the jaw muscles become stiff as well. Dr. Kim recommends that you eat only soft foods, apply a cold compress often and avoidance of extreme jaw movement. In mild to moderate cases of TMJ, patients can use over-the-counter medications such as ibuprofen to help manage the pain. We also provide night guards to help ease jaw pain at night. In more severe cases, surgery may be required. Surgery is an irreversible procedure that is often a last-resort.

 

If you are interested in TMJ treatment with Dr. Kim, give us a call at 909-296-7920 to schedule an appointment!