Patients suffering from teeth grinding often visit our dental studio. It is easy for a dentist to confirm the clinical image of a patient experiencing bruxism as soon as he opens his mouth, although the patients themselves are usually unaware of the problem, since it appears to be an unconscious and harmless habit that can eventually cause severe problems. Let’s explain the term bruxism.
What is a bruxism and how it is manifested?
Bruxsism is a medical term for excessive teeth grinding and clenching that is not related to food chewing and it often occurs during sleep. It causes long and severe damage of teeth and its supporting structures. It can result in teeth enamel wearing away which due to continuous teeth friction can lead to enamel fracture at the beginning thus creating rough edges of incisor teeth while in the final stage upper and lower teeth begin to lose the fine anatomic structures, become smooth and they fit together like legos when biting. If a patient doesn’t consult a dentist on time during the final stage, he can lose more than two thirds of a tooth after few years.
Bruxism is manifested as an unconscious teeth clenching associated to strong lower jaw movements during which the grinding occurs. A study has shown that during eight hours of sleep people usually experience 250 teeth contacts, while the ones suffering from bruxism experience between 1 200 and 12 000 teeth contacts. It becomes evident that bruxists’ teeth endure much during sleep.
Bruxism often occurs as a result of psychological disorders such as stress, anxiety, fear or fatigue. Today it is proven that tooth grinding during sleep is related to daily emotional stress. Recent medicine classifies bruxism as a parasomnia that is a sleep disorder such as sleepwalking, night terrors, nightmares, epilepsy or sleeping tachycardia.
Wearing away of teeth may also be caused by an orthodontic anomaly, inappropriate upper or lower jaw development, irregular teeth position etc.
A part from bruxism, parafunctions, disorders occurring during the day, may influence wearing a way of teeth structures.
Para functions are usually related to demanding physical work, but they can also appear due to biting nails, or other tiny objects (such us small plastic coffee spoons), ice cubes etc. Unlike bruxism parafunctions cause wearing a way of certain teeth structures.
People older than 25 both male and female usually suffer from bruxusm, although some children may experience it too but only for short period of time and it is related to colds, ear infections or allergies without any consequences.
Diagnosis and treatment
Since it appears only during sleep, it is hard for you to notice the teeth grinding yourself and our partner is usually the one who brings the attention to it. You personally may experience pain jaw and teeth pain or frequent headaches. Other symptoms include: excessive teeth sensitiveness during chewing, or sensitive reactions to cold and hot stimulus, joint pain, and anxiety.
If you experience any of the above symptoms it is important to see your dentist in order to get the appropriate diagnosis. More important is not to forget regular checkups every six months that allows any oral problem to be discovered and treated properly as the proverb says „better safe than sorry“
It is necessary to stop this harmful habit, with our help, to prevent any further damages and to treat the existing ones.
If bruxism occurs only at night we will provide you with silicon mouth guard (night guard tray) made upon your dental impression that you shall wear at night to prevent further teeth fracturing. If bruxism is a result of improper bite we might propose the appropriate orthodontic treatment.
