My Appointment (long post) - TMJ Disorder -TemporoMandibular Joint Message Board

Ouch-ear-pain · 10-15-2003, 12:51 PM

Oooohhhhh,
I am so mad right know! I will tell you how it all went from the time I walked in...

I turned my new patient forms in (they were sent to me in the mail), and she said I had one more to fill-out. So I filled it out, and turned it it. About 2-3 minutes later she called me in. My mom came in behind me. I sat down in the consultaion room and she filled out some paperwork, (she asked me no questions). Then she said the dentist will be in. After 5-10 minutes of waiting he finally came in...

This is were trouble sadness and angriness came in. He went and put some gloves on and told his assistant some dental terms to write down. She did as he told. Then he leaned the chair back and said open. I opened my mouth and he "fiddled" with it. He took measurements and told them to the assistant. He explained nothing whatsoever about my measurements. He said my overall opening was 11mm. After that he said something about 44mm. He then told me I need to start flossing regularly. He also told me I have a potential for gum disease. He took this poky thing as I call it and started poking my gums and making them bleed. That really hurt!! Then he said I need to make an appt. with a dental hygienest and get my teeth cleaned.

Then he stoped and took off his gloves and started talking to my mother. He told her that "I" caused TMJ on my own!

OOOHHHH man I was mad!! He never asked me ANY of my symptoms!!!! He said a mouthguard and a splint "might" be helpful. He said I needed braces and wanted to put them on me but not until I got my teeth cleaned, and after I had splint therapy. Then he told me I caused TMJ by-myself and I should not clench. He said the reason why you have TMJ is because of yourself. He had no other options for me.

What the heck is wrong with this guy?? My cost will be $350.00 for a mouthguard not a splint a mouthguard!! Then since he does braces he wants to put me in those for the cost of $6,340.00 dollars! He said I will need treatment for 5 years!!!! None of that cost is including a splint! Do you know how much splints cost?

My other orthodontist said I had TMJ because of an overbite and this one says because of myself! I am so getting another opinion! Forget about him! Can you believe this? Thanks for listening to me mope about.

Ear

BTW: He took no x-rays whatsoever and that was all my consultation was about! Shouldn't they do x-rays ask me my symptoms??? I don't know about this guy!!

TonyF · 10-15-2003, 01:01 PM

Hey
I completely understand what you are going through, When I went to see a Dentist about pains in my face and neck and jaw, He said it was caused from impacting of my wisdoms so I went and spent 1000$ on that, Then he told me to come back in 2 weeks, When I did he looked at them and said there looking good, I told him Im still having pain and its getting worse, all I was told is, It will clear up, Now Im here struggling with this pain.

kami-girl · 10-15-2003, 06:49 PM

Did you see an orthodondist or a tmj specialist? What part of the US do you live in? Perhaps their is someone who would be able to give you a proper diagnosis. Sounds like this guy just wants to make pretty teeth and lots of $.

Grace

GenDen · 10-15-2003, 06:50 PM

Did he tell you how to stop clenching and grinding? If you had asked him, bet he wouldn't have had an answer. It is something you didn't cause and something you can't control during sleep.

In my opinion, the problem is that you went to an orthodontist. Orthodontists don't study about TMJ problems. They specialize in doing braces, so of course that is what they will tell you. You need to see a TMJ specialist for a diagnosis and treatment plan.

The one good thing I read in your account is that he said that you shouldn't be fitted with braces until you had been through splint therapy. Did he recommend a TMJ specialist to fit you with a splint ?

Perhaps you could get your mother to read the messages on this board and learn about TMJ dysfunction. Since your parents will be paying for the treatment, it is important that they are informed about the condition, methods of treatment, and an idea about the cost of treatment. Unfortunately, it is not cheap, but a lifetime of pain is much more expensive in many ways.

In the meantime, during the day, monitor yourself and do not clench. It is impossible to control clenching and grinding at night during sleep, but during the day you can be aware.

I think the 44 mm is the opening measurement and the 11 mm is how far you can move your jaw from side to side. Both of these measurements are normal. He is probably right that you need a splint to put your jaw in the right position or a relaxed position and when you are out of pain for a while a follow up with braces. It very well may be that you are clenching because your teeth are not fitting together properly. Don't blame yourself for clenching.

Best of luck in finding treatment. I believe that if you get treatment now, you won't suffer problems throughout your life. At this point you have likely not done any permanent damage to your jaw joints or muscles. Treatment right away will keep you from having a lifetime of problems like many on this board have had. You might want to print this out for your mother to read. There are several mothers who post on this board who are gaining information to help find treatment for their teenage children. Best of everything to you Ear.

saaraah · 10-15-2003, 07:03 PM

ouch - im sorry that your appointment was disappointing. i can completely relate to how you're feeling - some doctors have no respect or decency for their patients.

it's taken me awhile, but i've finally found a good dentist.. you just need to keep on searching. try to find a dentist who works with TMJD patients instead of an orthodontist - they're more likely to push for braces instead of other treatments.

btw, i think that the 44 mm is your jaw opening [wide], and the 11 mm is how far you can open side to side.

normal jaw opening is 52-56 mm, i believe, and im not sure what normal is for side to side.

anyway, hang in there.. i'd definitely consider finding a dentist who gives you a good "gut feeling" and treats you like a human being.

take care,

- saaraah.