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Myofascial tmjd vs disc displacement/osteoarthritis

T

TheTinyDancer

Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2020
Messages
55
Location
Ireland
I was diagnosed with TMJD last year. It took the dentists a bit of time to make the diagnosis as the pain often manifested as toothache so there was a query of AFP. Generally speaking I rarely had trismus and my jaw only clicked occasionally, so it didn't present as "typical" tmjd. Long story short was diagnosed with myofascial tmjd which only affected the left hand side. The past 2 months the pain has been in the right also. Dentist made me an nti device which overall took away the pain in the molars (presumably as I couldn't clench them anymore) but the jaw pain has gotten worse since wearing the device. Im unsure whether that is coincidental or if the device is excaberating the pain. I feel the pain is in the "bone/joint" just beside the ears. There is also pain in the retromolar trigone area when I press on it intraorally (both sides). There is definite tightness in my masseters but my worry is that I also have arthritis of the jaw as I know that over time, clenching can cause wear and tear of the joint. Although the dentist thinks the pain is myofascial he hasn't excluded arthralgia. What tests would be conclusive? I feel the anxiety of not knowing is likely contributing to some of the pain.
 
Last edited:
Arthritis in the TMJ is extremely rare, as usual with TMJ there's no such thing as conclusive tests for anything, sorry.
 
Oh that's reassuring it's rare @Gordon Thank you as always for your help! ?
 
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