Braces and TMJ disorder, how they are related and how one affects the other is a very commonly asked question. In fact, we’ve seen plenty of people complain that their jaw pain, clicking, headaches, or limited mouth opening started or got worse after getting braces.
So, can braces actually make TMD worse?
When we talk about the co-relation between TMJ Disorder and braces, we make sure to mention that usually the culprit is the undiagnosed TMJ disorder already present at the time of the consultation with the dentist or orthodontist.
It could either be because the doctor didn’t feel the need to check the TMJ or that the patient did not reveal their TMJ related symptoms beforehand; that a TMJ Disorder can get aggravated during or after the braces treatment.
Braces change your occlusal or biting forces which in turn causes a change in the load on your joint. Now, if muscles were already not working in harmony in the first place, it becomes even more difficult for them to bear any changes occurring on the joint.
Braces are not a solution for TMJ problems. If you have an imbalanced bite, condylar hyperplasia, the first line of treatment is to realign your jaw in the right position; achieve a proper jaw joint position with TMJ treatment. Similarly, aligners do not work for TMJ disorder.
If you’re a dentist or an orthodontist initiating braces or aligner therapy with a patient, it’s always best to check for jaw balance and muscular forces before you start the treatment and inform the patient beforehand so as to avoid any issues at a later stage.
Things like changes in how the teeth contact, altered chewing patterns, muscle fatigue, or simply the normal fluctuations of TMD could potentially make symptoms more noticeable during treatment.
As a patient, it is just as much your responsibility to inform the doctor about your preexisting condition as it is for the doctor to take a note of it.