TMD | Peak Physical Therapy | Hingham MA

Do you experience pain, clicking, or locking in your jaw when you are chewing, yawning, or talking? Any of these symptoms could mean that you have a temporomandibular disorder, or TMD, temporomandibular joint disorder. Pain and suffering in the jaw region typically stem from the TMJ and often go undiagnosed or untreated. Just like any other muscle and joint pain in the body, physical therapy can be a great solution. Peak Physical Therapy offers physical therapy services in Norwell, Scituate, Quincy, and our other 3 locations. We can also serve those in need of physical therapy Hingham MA, Weymouth, Rockland, and surrounding areas.

What is TMJ?

The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is in front of the ears on both sides of the face where the jaw meets the skull. This area is full of muscles, cartilage, ligaments, and a disk that allows the jaw joint to move. TMD or Temporomandibular Disorder is the pain and clicking in this area and can be located in any of these supporters, but most commonly in the muscle in the joint.

Common Causes

Any irregular repetitive motion or any history of trauma to the chin or jaw can cause TMD. In the event of a blow to the jaw, pain and problems may not occur at that time and can surface later in life, perhaps when visiting Peak Physical Therapy. We also offer services for those who are in need of physical therapy Hingham MA by visiting one of our 6 locations. Children commonly undergo injuries like these while playing and are often unaffected until years down the road. Repetitive teeth grinding and jaw clenching during sleep are also common causes of the disorder. Because these injuries happen during slumber, patients are often unaware of the actions until abnormal wear patterns on teeth are found by a dentist. Repetitive gum chewing is similar in motion to grinding teeth and jaw clenching, causing the same pain.

Physical Therapy for TMD

Patients who experience TMD are often told that wearing a mouthguard during sports or while sleeping or refraining from chewing gum are the only ways to help TMD and that they might experience the pain for the rest of their lives. However, Peak Physical Therapy disagrees. Those in need of receiving physical therapy Hingham MA and surrounding areas for TMD can dramatically decrease symptoms and possibly eliminate a few. Joint remobilization techniques are used to help improve the joint motion and muscle stiffness around the jaw. If the jaw is “locked” due to a displaced disk, physical therapy can restore the motion of the jaw and prevent future occurrences by retraining the muscles around the joint.

Peak Physical Therapy

Our South Shore Physical Therapy practice specializes in physical therapy including many specialty programs including return-to-sports, vestibular, pelvic health, post-concussion, aquatics, and more. Locations include physical therapy Norwell, MA, Scituate, MA, Quincy, MA, Hanover, MA, Pembroke, MA, and Braintree, MA. Our specialized programs combined with state-of-the-art facilities allow us to meet the unique needs of our local patients and achieve the fastest results. If you are unsure whether this type of treatment can help you, we offer a no-obligation FREE injury screening. Click here for more information.