Pain in the jaw

[PositionandHold]

Put your hand under your jaw and push up at the same time trying to open your mouth. This will give temporary relief if it's the same TMJ problem I have.

Holy cow, that really worked. Thanks for the tip.

I'm going to have to go to the pharmacy and grab a guard, and maybe get a custom one from the dentist when time permits. Odd to think I'm clenching and grinding my teeth at night.

 

[Daytonaflyer]

I had some pain in my upper right jaw for a few weeks last year. I seem to crack my jaw sometimes...kinda like cracking your knuckles. Well one time it continued to hurt.
I found that by massaging the upper jaw muscles with my hand two or three times a day, eventually the pain went away. I had to massage pretty high up, like an inch and a half from my ear, and do it pretty hard.
If this is the same problem, you'll know when you hit the spot.

 

[NW_Pilot]

I have been feeling a disturbing pain all along my jaw for the past month and it is not going away.
It mainly hurt me when i eat
I was thinking it may be related to flying, anyone has ever felt that?, and any suggestion on what to do?

Thanks

I will keep my comments to myself on the cause of your jaw pain supprized no one is making fun? Sounds Like TMJ or Tooth problem! If you ever find yourself south of the border go to the dentist there will save you a bunch of $$$$

 

[avbug]

Years ago, the military wouldn't admit individuals for pilot training if they had fillings. This was due to the potential for air (or pressure) to get trapped in the filling and casue pain as the pilot ascended.

I spent three weeks getting a root canal about eight years ago. The evening they finished the last visit, I got a late call for a morning deployment. I was on the road first thing, and that evening spoke to my wife, who had a call from the dentist saying I needed to come back in for them to have a look at something. This was in February. I told them I might be able to make it back by October (turned out to be December, that year).

I found that I couldn't hardly chew; every time I bit down, even on the softest of foods, I got shooting pains like someone had an ice pick in the nerve of an open tooth. It really hurt, and the usual over the counter painkillers weren't helping much. The dentist assured me that there was nothing wrong, he just wanted to "have a look."

My duties prevented finnding and seeing a dentist, and I couldn't take any significant painkillers (nor would I) for the same reasons. The dentist assured me that nothing was wrong that would prevent my flying, though I did experience a fair amount of discomfort.

One day I had a break, and while scheduling a dental visit wasn't feasible, making several jumps was. On the way to altitude, somewhere around 15,000' the pain in my jaw built considerably, and then I felt a pop, as though I'd been punched in the jaw. The pain ended abruptly, and we were soon at 18,000 for the jump. The jump went uneventfully, but when I got on the ground I found I had shooting pains down the side of my neck and I couldn't turn my head in one direction.

During a later visit, x-rays revealed a large air pocket beneath a filling. A bigger problem was the root canal itself; the root in the affected tooth was gone, but the dentist had missed going down into the bottom of the tooth with the spike, and instead drilled into the nerve of the adjacent tooth. The spike was driven down that hole, and every time bit down, I was driving that spike into the live nerve on the other tooth. Apparently it was through this same passage that the air vented as I climbed to altitude. I don't know why I couldn't turn my head. That went away in a few days.

I had an overwhelming pain many years ago while I was living in Australia. Two physicians thought it was something serious, and scheduled me for a cat scan. Not coming up with anything, one sent me to a dentist, who found a massive infection in a wisdom tooth. My tooth didn't hurt, but I had pounding headaches that felt completely unrelated to anything dental, that no painkiller would touch. The tooth was pulled, the infection treated, and the pain went away in short order. Dental pain can manifest itself as all sorts of things that would never lead you to suspect it's a tooth issue.

 

[SUSPilot]

Save yourself the time and cash. Go to the sports store and buy a football mouth guard. Form fit it, and sleep with it in your mouth.

The dentist wants to "build" you a "splint" but it's nothing more than a mouth guard.

Id be careful "doc" the trays that the dentist will build are made of a plastic that is indented to reduce friction. The advice you just gave will actually harm the situation and not help since football mouth guards are made of a rubber that will not reduce friction, and in fact will increase the friction. Go to a real dentist trust me they are not out to screw you over.

 

[145EXR]

i had tmj for about 2 yrs...really bad..couldnt chew without pain..my oral surgeon made me a splint and weaned me off it over a period of about 4 months..the mri showed the disc was not capturing on my right side when i extended my jaw..i have no idea how i got this problem..i now have a soft bite guard i wear at night and ive been free of pain for about 2 yrs...one thing that helped was switching from the david clark clamshells to the telex headsets..seems that they place a LOT less pressure on the jaw and it was worth every penny ...im now pain free and didnt need surgery.

 

[panama_gringo]

Hi,

My business is diagnostic equipment for sleep disorders with sleep apnea and bruxism being two major areas. In short, I live this stuff and work with some of the best doctors and dentists in the world.

Jaw pain can mean a variety of problems. TMJ is nothing to fool around with. many dentists are not capable of dealing with TMJ and bruxism (teeth grinding and clenching) since they are more interested in drilling and filling.

Anytime you are doing anything that may affect your bite (cheap mouthguards come to mind) you may be setting yourself up for a lot of problems. Bottom line -- Find a TMJ specialist to handle jaw pain.

Little known fact -- Bruxism can be caused by sleep apnea. The grinding seems to be the brain's way of opening the airway. Small percentage of patients but still, it is worth considering.

Bruxism is usually indicated by teeth wear, sensitive teeth, morning jaw pain or headaches, cracked teeth or fillings and chipped teeth. The problem is that dentists usually have to wait for damage to a tooth to make a diagnosis.

There is only one non-subjective test outside of a sleep lab that will confirm bruxism -- the BiteStrip. See the following website for more information on bruxism and the product:

www.bitestrip.com

Questions? Fire away.

 

[JediNein]

I spent some time being a ginna pig for a dental student. *That* was a learning experience. The current dental student classes are being taught that 'air pockets' under fillings don't exist. Their reason for pain after a flight is 'the change in altitude'. I confirmed the teachings with the professors. Then, I let my student know the profs were full of it, having once nearly gone into shock from the pain after a flight due to an 'air pocket' under a loose filling. That was a fun root canal.

A few months previous, I'd had problems after a flight that a dentist thought was wisdom teeth problems. It wasn't -- the wisdom teeth were causing pressure on the loose filling up front, in the tooth that later needed the root canal. The wisdom teeth removal only temporarily solved that problem.

TMJ can be a cause of jaw pain, same with:
Sinus problems
Allergies (even to a food caught between the teeth!)
the previously mentioned Bruxism, although the cracked teeth can have deep cavities
cavities under fillings
loose fillings (the ones put in as kids do corrode and wear out)
David Clamps or other tight headsets causing pressure on the ear or jaw
Eyeglass stems that don't fit right
Ear problems, infections, water in the ear, and so on
Clenching one's teeth from stress (at night, ever dream about your job, and the associated desire to choke the living daylights out of the [pick one: Captain/FO/FA/PAX/Dispatcher/FE/Controller/CFI/MGMT/Union guys/idiot in the rice rocket that just cut you off/weather dude/scheduler/kids/spouse/girlfriend/guyfriend/student/bill collector/etc]
Muscle spasms in the neck (working out too hard, the oh BLEEP! traffic call, too many hours on flightinfo)
Broken jaw (ever fall out of bed or tick off the girlfriend?)
A dislocating jaw (subluxation) - can be really fun if it stays out for a while then snaps back in

Start with the DDS. If no fix, try the AME (call for advice first), then an ENT (ear-nose-throat).

For all those that hate going to the dentist, keep in mind that some of them are pilots, and those pilots have to see a flight instructor every two years at a minimum. So what do I tell my DDS/flight student before he starts doing anything? "Remember, paybacks are a b*tch."

 

[Metro752]

my girlfriend gets the same thing, she says it's too big, sucks to be her!

 

[unreal]

Interesting that I came across this thread. A couple nights ago, I noticed that my jaw clicked a little when I moved it from side to side. I understand this is nothing really serious, since it's very common. For whatever reason though, I woke up the next morning with a very stiff jaw. It's still stiff as hell right now, but I can eat and talk fine and have full range of motion. It's not even pain really, just a bit of an ache.

Really annoying, though. Thank god it doesn't affect my flying any. Anyone have this?