[net.med] TMJ

rick@rochester.UUCP (12/11/84)

From: Rick Floyd  <rick>

I have a TMJ (temporomandibular joint) problem that keeps me from opening
my jaw further than an inch or so. Other fun symptoms are frequent
headaches and jaw pain. The problem seems to be caused by a disk in one
of the joints being out of place. The people at the local dental clinic
tried lots of things to fix the problem (no caffeine, muscle relaxants,
bite plates, soft foods, stretching exercises and so on) and eventually
decided that surgery was the only thing that would work.

Does anyone have any experience with surgery to correct this problem? Is
it a big deal? How well does it work? How about experience with
non-surgical alternatives? (I have a friend whose chiropractor claims to
be quite successful at dealing with this problem. I am skeptical but
would like to avoid surgery.)

As usual, any comments will be considered 3rd or 4th opinions but will
be greatly appreciated.

	rick floyd
	rick@rochester.ARPA
	seismo!rochester!rick