If so we’d be very interested in hearing your experiences and how this has affected you.
TemporoMandibular joint and muscle disorders, commonly called "TMJ," are a group of conditions that cause pain and dysfunction in the jaw joint and the muscles that control jaw movement. For most people, pain in the area of the jaw joint or muscles does not signal a serious problem. Generally, discomfort from these conditions is occasional and temporary, often occurring in cycles. The pain eventually goes away with little or no treatment. Some people, however, develop significant, long-term symptoms.
Common symptoms may include:
• Jaw pain and/or stiffness
• Headaches, usually at the temples and side of head
• Sensitive teeth
• Painful or tender jaw joint
• Difficulty opening jaw
• Pain and fatigue when eating hard or chewy foods
• Clicks, pops, or grinding sound in jaw joint
• Awareness of grinding/clenching teeth while sleeping or awake – Bruxism
We are running the ResBlog because we are interested in the opinions and experiences of people who suffer from TMJ Disorder

In particular we are interested in exploring the following aspects:-

• At what age did you start to suffer from TMJ disorder and what were the symptoms?
• How were you diagnosed? Was it your GP? Was it your Dentist? Were you referred to a specialist?
• What treatments have you used? Have you tried “alternative treatments”? If so which ones do you use and how effective are they?
• What impact if any has it had on your working life?
• If you had one piece of advice for a fellow sufferer what would it be?
• Would you be interested in contributing to an online encyclopaedia for other patients?

Thanks very much in advance for your help. Please feel free to check back on the blog to see what others have said and perhaps contribute further thoughts.

As with all our market research projects, of which this ResBlog is one example, the responses of people who participate are anonymous. This is in line with market research codes of conduct. To participate all you need to do is scroll down to the comments area, type a nickname of your choice and then put your comments into the box. To find out more about what we do both in terms of work for our clients and our patient communities and resources please explore our web site further if you have not already done so?

I look forward to reading your comments and, of course, thank you very much for your input.
Best wishes
Belinds
PS: Please feel free to share this blog with anyone who you think might find it of interest.

Pierluigi Vullo | 12/07/2007 17:27:00

Welcome to the TMJ Blog!!!

We use these Blogs to facilitate discussions amongst people who suffer of a particular condition and to share their experience. Sometimes we also use them in conjunctions with Medical Market Research studies so that Pharma Companies can have a better understanding on the issues related to the drugs they produce. This information can the be used to redefine or even start Clinical Trials, or improve compliance programs, or re-consider Treatment Guidelines and so forth.

Diagnosing TMJ diseases and disorders can be difficult and confusing. For example, facial pain can be a symptom of many conditions, such as sinus or ear infections, decayed or abscessed teeth, various types of headache, and facial neuralgia. Currently, there is no widely accepted, standard test to correctly identify all TMJ conditions. In most cases, however, a complete evaluation, including a detailed medical history, the patient’s description of symptoms, and physical examination of the head, neck, face and jaw provide information useful for making a diagnosis.

The purpose of this Blog is to gain an understanding on how people who are affected by this condition have been diagnosed and which treatments they have received. We hope that by sharing your experiences, other people may find it useful and informative.

Thank you

Pierluigi Vullo

teresa | 12/07/2007 19:18:00

10 years ago, June 5, I was attacked and beaten almost to death it broke my jaw in 2 places. The area where it was brokes was high in the cheek bone so it didn't reaquire me to have my jaw wired shut... The whole left side of my face went in an inch and a half moved up an inch curled into the eye socket, blowing the eye socket, shattering the front of my face knocking my teeth out in the front and shattering the rest. The assailent pulled all the hair out of the left side of my head smashed a mirror in my face splitting my head open inbetween my eyes, I fell to the floor he was on top of me choking me smashing my face into the floor. I found a shard of glass and rammed it into his leg, got out to my car and drove unconcious 12 miles down back country roads to town and when I came to I was at work. An angel drove me, I was unconcious.. This is the thing I dont understand though... Social Security, in us and doctors say ..... Did you know you have tmj? duh! I would be surprised to find out I didnt have tmj, but none of them has told me what to do or refered me to any other doctors. The left side of my face and jaw is always in pain. It is the degrees of pain on any given day.