Jaw Joint Therapy / Functional Therapy

Jaw joint therapy deals with the diagnosis and therapy of the disease of the mandibular joint and the chewing muscles, taking into account the musculoskeletal system of the entire body.

What is a Jaw Joint Therapy / Functional Therapy?

The smooth interaction of the jaw joints, muscles and teeth is a requirement for the optimal function of the mouth area. Disruptions to this equilibrium cannot only lead to a decreased chewing function but also partly cause headaches and ailments in the spinal column. Such disturbances can result in psychological burdens with the grinding and pressing of the teeth (bruxism), faulty dentures, wrong tooth position, impaired motion sequences and movement patterns, etc.

Functional therapy is the treatment method used in order to fix or offset these disturbances and to alleviate or cure the symptoms (headaches, migraines, tinnitus, etc.).

The treatment normally takes place per an individually produced occlusal splint  in combination with physiotherapy to meet your needs.

What are the symptoms of a dysfunction?

Do you have one or more of the following problems?

  • Muscle pain in the face, neck or shoulders
  • Earaches
  • Headaches
  • Grinding, cracking or pain in the jaw joints
  • Limited movement of the lower jaw
  • Chronic tension

The reason for these problems can be a malfunction in your masticatory apparatus. The causes can be uncovered through a dental functional analysis and subsequently therapeutic measures can be introduced.

What is a functional analysis?

The functional analysis shall now help to examine the above-mentioned interaction, in order to discover possible disorders and to establish an appropriate treatment plan. Initially, you will depict in a detailed patient-doctor-talk your problems in the head and neck area. After that, an examination follows with the hands of the mandibular joint, and the face and neck muscles (manual functional analysis). In addition, various devices are implemented in order to analyze the mandibular joint situation.

For what else is the functional analysis used?

The functional analysis is used in the case of healthy circumstances as a preventive measure. It is important for the planning of the dentures as inlays, crowns and bridges as well as before orthodontic measures.