Do you grind and/or clench your teeth?

Many patients grind and/or clench their teeth. Some patients grind and/or clench their teeth at night in their sleep, some during the daytime when they are concentrating on something or when they are under stress in a particular situation or time of day. Often times patients are aware that they grind and/or clench their teeth when we mention in our findings at their initial examination that we believe they do so. Other times patients are unaware that they grind and/or clench their teeth. This may be due to the fact that the damage we are seeing in their mouth which indicates that they are grinding and/or clenching their teeth has been present for a long time and they have since discontinued the habit or the patient is unaware of the habit. Sometimes patients who grind and/or clench their teeth at night are not aware of it but they often wake up in the morning with headaches at the side of their head just above their temporomandibular joint (TMJ) (a.k.a. Jaw Joint) or a stiff neck which may be associated with grinding and/or clenching their teeth. Often if the patient is grinding and/or clenching their teeth at night they may not be aware of it but their spouse is aware of it when questioned about it because they hear it during the night.

Treatment for grind and/or clenching your teeth:

There are different modalities of treatment that are evaluated on a patient by patient basis for those who grind and/or clench their teeth. There are different treatment options available to you at Dhuga Dental Centre if you grind and/or clench your teeth such as an occlusal equilibration (a.k.a. bite leveling) and a periodontal appliance (a.k.a. nightguard).

An occlusal equilibration involves an assessment of the way your teeth fit and bite and chew and grind together and the removal of any interferences in order to level or smooth out your bite when you bite and chew and grind your teeth. Often times when this discrepancy is removed and the bite is equilibrated in this way the grinding and/or clenching habit significantly decreases or is eliminated all together.

A periodontal appliance (a.k.a. nightguard) is a plastic mouth piece that is made for your mouth. It is a two appointment procedure. At the first appointment an impression or mould is taken of your teeth and sent to a commercial laboratory where the appliance is fabricated to the exact specifications of your teeth. At the second appointment the appliance is fitted in your mouth and instructions provided to you. The appliance works by preventing your top teeth from hitting your bottom teeth and preventing the grinding and/or clenching habit and eliminating the damage to your teeth and slowly helping you break your habit.