Other Temporomandibular joint disorder

[cherryblossom]

@Smile - Please be careful about using abbreviations that many people will not understand. Please try to spell out acronyms. I have changed your thread title from Tmj to T.M.J. Disorder.

 

[Ghostybear73]

Just an observation, but T.M.J is not a disease/disorder. The actual medical term is tmj/Tmj/TMJ. Please google it and you will see that the acronym you have posted is incorrect. Of course it could be written out temporomandibular joint disease, but I think that would be just as confusing and people wouldn't understand.

@cherryblossom I'm not trying to be difficult, I just want to make sure that you understand the correction you made is, in reality, incorrect.

 

[Lady of Longbourn]

@Ghostybear73 When I googled TMJ I understood it to be a rather broad term. And that it seemed to be called about 2 or 3 different things. Webmd, a national institute webiste and mayo clinic all said 'disorders'. Wikipedia says it's a dysfunction.

A bit confusing to be honest and I agree with @cherryblossom.

 

[Ghostybear73]

I agree that it is confusing, but I'm not disputing the fact that is is a disorder/dyfunction/disease, which you will find to be the same if you look at the ICD national coding system. I am merely stating that the use of T.M.J. is not a correct acronym for the problem. It is TMJ or Tmj or tmj. I don't feel correcting a title with an incorrect title is appropriate.

 

[Ghostybear73]

ICD is the acronym for international classification of diseases. I have been in the field and teaching medicine for over 25 years and I have never use the full word for either TMJ or ICD.

 

[cherryblossom]

To me, as a medic, TMJ means Temporomandibular joint, which is just a joint in the human body and, as such makes absolutley no sense as a thread title. I read the posts that followed, and I did google it before I changed the thread title, and this is what I found.

Temporomandibular joint disorders (TMJ and TMD)
(TMJ disorders) occur as a result of problems with the jaw, jaw and surrounding facial muscles that control chewing and moving the jaw. These disorders are also referred to as TMJ syndrome, TMJ dysfunction or disorders (TMD).

So infact, TMJ doesn't stand alone in the way Smile was talking about it, because TMJ is just a joint, and not a disorder or dysfunction.

The point is that whatever the exact term for the condition, not many people would understand TMJ as a stand alone reference when reading through thread titles.

The initial point remains that none of us should use acronyms / abbreviations that other members will not understand.

All I did was change the title to something that hopefully other members might understand. But I see your point, it still doesn't actually clarify anything. I will remove the acronym completely. If Smile is unhappy with the change, she can ask for it to be altered at the help desk.

 

[Abstract]

Another person with TMJ here. I now have significant damage to the joint. Of all things acupuncture helps the most when it gets severe. And anti inflammatories.

Relaxation and constantly focussing on releasing the muscles have been important. Including those just above the ear that are tensed when clenching the jaw. Neck posture is also important I find. I try to massage the muscles in my jaw every night too. It can be easier to do by placing ones thumb inside the mouth and fingers on the outside.

 

[digger]

I had a guard made from my dentist. It was expensive but has made a massive difference. I knew I sometimes ground my teeth at night because it would wake me up sometimes, but I wasn't aware how much I clenched my jaw, even just going off to sleep, until I got the guard and noticed it stopping me doing it. I suspect I do it in the day too, but stopping it at night has significantly reduced the amount of head, jaw and neck pain I get.

 

[Smile]

Thank you all for all of your advice. I will try me working on them.

@cherryblossom, sorry about the abbreviation. I have no problem with the change & honestly wasn't aware of the full name. I will be more conscious of it in the future...