Bruxism (teeth grinding): causes, symptoms and treatment

What is bruxism and why do some people suffer from it?

If you wake up in the morning with a headache and unexplained jaw discomfort, you may have developed an unconscious habit called bruxism, you may have developed an unconscious habit called bruxism, especially while bruxing. and that manifests itself especially during sleep.

What is bruxism?

Bruxism is a basically involuntary and automatic tendency to grind your teeth by tensing your jaw for no clear purpose. It can appear in the waking state, as a habit that appears without being noticed (as in the case of trichotillomania) or during the day. trichotillomania) or during sleep, when it is more difficult to control.

The grinding of the teeth that characterizes bruxism consists of the constant grinding of the molars and premolars, tensing the jaw and causing them to rub against each other. In some cases the teeth located in the frontal area are also involved.

As for the types of bruxism, no unified classification system has been developed and in any case it is usually described according to its intensity, the time at which it manifests itself (during wakefulness, during sleep or in both states), its duration, etc. In other words, beyond the description of the different symptoms through which this grinding of teeth manifests itself, there is no way to distinguish between variants of bruxism.

Symptoms of bruxism

Bruxism usually presents symptoms both at the psychological level and in the state of the tissues of the jaw and teeth.. This means that they affect the quality of life of people in many aspects and that their effects are not limited simply to the moments when teeth grinding is present.

The main symptoms of bruxism are the following:

• Jaw pain.
• Wear and tear of the teeth and weakening of their grip (in the long term).
• Insomnia.
• Stress.
• Headache.

In addition, bruxism can generate collateral effects such as the appearance of problems in the jaw joints, Pain in the ears or psychological problems derived from lack of sleep and, if necessary, eating problems.

Of course, the diagnosis of bruxism can only be made the diagnosis of bruxism can only be made by a competent professional in the field.Therefore, it is necessary to undergo a medical examination to determine whether or not this habit is present. In addition, as it is an involuntary or sleep-induced act, it is possible that it is another person who is more aware of the presence of the symptoms and who points out the need to see a specialist.

Psychological and neurological causes of bruxism

The causes of bruxism are largely unknown, because its onset often seems to be triggered by psychological and neurological causes. seems to be triggered by neurological causes (and therefore difficult to understand). (and therefore difficult to understand in itself) or psychological (in which case the triggering factors may be in the interaction of the person with elements of their environment).

That is why beyond some cases in which the appearance of bruxism is favored by the formation of the jaw and teeth, teeth grinding has also been associated with continuous episodes of stress, which in turn can be aggravated by lack of sleep and by the rest of the symptoms of bruxism.

As far as the neurological houses of bruxism are concerned, these would be linked to a normal release and uptake of neurotransmitters in some parts of the brain, these would be linked to a normal release and uptake of neurotransmitters in some parts of the brain, not necessarily due to structural malformations...not necessarily due to structural malformations.

Treatment of bruxism

The most commonly used remedy to protect against the effects of bruxism is the use of molded splints that adapt to the teeth and protect them from dental wear. However, this solution only serves to partially alleviate the symptoms, and by itself does not cure bruxism..

An effective treatment of teeth grinding should be carried out after a proper medical check-up, and in many cases should include measures to reduce stress levels, for which psychotherapy specialized in parasomnias and anxiety disorders and training in relaxation techniques are recommended. The objective of these treatments carried out from the psychological approach will be to make the intensity in which bruxism occurs decrease significantly.