Chin Strap and TMJ issues

[scruffies]

I have been on CPAP for about 4 months now and use nasal pillows and a chin strap. About a week ago I started having jaw pain on my left side near my ear when I am chewing. After talking with my doctor about it she opined that it most likely is Temporomandibular Joint disorder, or TMJ, and suggested cold compresses, anti-inflammation meds, avoid gum, etc.

So I was wondering if the chin strap might be contributing to the problem. I will be going to my dentist to check it out, but wanted to get the forum's advice.

Anyone else have TMJ issues? How did you deal with it?

Can you successfully tape your mouth without using a chin strap which affects your jaw?

Thanks

[ChicagoGranny]

Do you grind or clench your teeth?

I would follow your doc's advice until the dentist can do an evaluation.

[LSAT]

I have had on and off problems, but I cannot attribute it to CPAP use since I use a FF Mask. The TMJ Doctor that I went to for advice didn't think my mask had any bearing. He said arthritic jaw joint.

[Pugsy]

I also have had TMJ issues off and on over the years and I don't use any sort of chin strap (never have beyond trying one for a week or so at the beginning of my therapy some 9 years ago).

It wouldn't be impossible for a chin strap to maybe accelerate the TMJ issue though if it is putting the jaw in a bind of sorts.
When mine flares up the last thing I need is a restricted jaw movement.

Maybe try going without the chin strap and hope the mouth breathing has lessened to the point it isn't a big deal and see if it helps the TMJ discomfort or not????

[Julie]

I believe many people tape without using chin straps... to answer your question.

[scruffies]

I will be seeing my dentist in two weeks but until then I will try Pugsy's suggestion of not using the chin strap to see how that affects both the TMJ and treatment.

Anyone have experience using a mouth guard rather than a chin strap to keep mouth closed for nasal pillow users? That might be easier on the jaw.

Granny.... I have no idea if I am a "grinder" or not. My jaw is not sore in the morning, and the TMJ only hurts sometimes when I chew.

Pugsy/LSAT: How do you treat the flare ups you mentioned, and how often do you get them (if you are comfortable sharing that).

I tried a collar, but it hurt my neck and I could not get comfortable with it sleeping on my side.

[Pugsy]

I just try not to do anything to aggravate it when it flares up and I take aspirin for the inflammation.
I can't take the usual NSAIDs because of gi issues. I have had it so bad I couldn't even eat and chew or open my mouth for much more than soup but that has been relatively rare for it to get that bad.

Mostly it's not too bad and I try to avoid stressful situations as best I can. I have so much crepitus in the joints that you can hear as well as feel the arthritis. If it's really bad I also have used heat. I seem to get more relief with heat than I do with ice.
Typically seems to run a pre programed course of about 6 weeks when it acts up.

It's never been nearly bad enough for long enough for me to want to do anything drastic.
Now I did try the Tap Pap nasal pillow mask because it has a built in mouth guard and it did seem to help me not "clench" my jaws so much when I am asleep. I used the TapPap for over a year and I think it did seems to reduce the episodes.
You might talk to your doctor and/or dentist about it if interested.
https://www.cpap.com/productpage/tap-pa ... roved.html

[Marillion]

I use 3M micropore paper medical tape and do not need a chin strap any longer. Works great for me.

[scruffies]

I also have had TMJ issues off and on over the years and I don't use any sort of chin strap (never have beyond trying one for a week or so at the beginning of my therapy some 9 years ago).

It wouldn't be impossible for a chin strap to maybe accelerate the TMJ issue though if it is putting the jaw in a bind of sorts.
When mine flares up the last thing I need is a restricted jaw movement.

Maybe try going without the chin strap and hope the mouth breathing has lessened to the point it isn't a big deal and see if it helps the TMJ discomfort or not????

Well Pugsy, the mystery of whether I really need a chin strap or not is solved. Up until about 3:30 I just taped my mouth closed (1" paper tape) and then I removed the tape for the remainder of the night. Here are the results:




Pretty sure I am a determined mouth breather and it looks like using just tape won't do the trick. Lots of leaks and when I did get up at 3:30 my mouth was so dry I could not even swallow. Maybe I need to use the 2" wide tape?

I have been using the chin strap since the first night and the TMJ just flared up a week ago, so maybe the TMJ is from other causes then the strap? Anyways, I tried....

[Pugsy]

Try wider tape. 1 inch and paper probably isn't holding well. Was it still stuck well at 3:30? If it was still really stuck then maybe look at mask movement leaking that first part of the night.

[ChicagoGranny]

Granny.... I have no idea if I am a "grinder" or not.

Your dentist will be able to tell by checking for damage to the teeth.

[bouledoux1]

I recently have been affected by the use of my chin strap coupled with my Resmed Airfit P10 nasal pillow mask. I am a hopeless mouth breather and if I don't use the chin strap my wife lets me know immediately with whacks on the bed next to me signalling me to cease and desist.

I never had a bit of trouble with the strap up till recently, but now it seems to throw my "bite" out of alignment and I find for a number of hours after awakening I have pain in my teeth when I bite down hard on something. I don't know quite how to explain it, but it seems as if my lower jaw on the right rear side is sticking up higher than before and it shocks the upper jaw teeth sufficiently upon chewing to make their nerves highly sensitive.

I was given a full face mask a while back to try that I'm going to give another go at getting it to make an air tight fit. The problem with it though was a small leak makes a very loud squeak and gets the spouse whacking me instead of the bed - Ouch! What did you hit ME for?

What is really weird about all of this is that I used the same chin strap and the same mask without ANY trouble for months on end! Now it is deforming my bite?

[Uff Da]

I had TMJ pretty bad before I had orthodontia in my 30s. The orthodontia realigned my jaw and I was without the problem for years. However, my teeth continued to move and I was starting to have TMJ very mildly before I started orthodontia again a couple of years ago at age 74. The braces came off in May, the same month I started CPAP. I asked my orthodontist the last time I saw him if I could expect to have TMJ problems again if I used a chin strap. He thought not, as he said wearing my retainers at night would likely protect me.

Well, he may have been wrong. Whether it is TMJ or not, the jaw pain from the chin strap was horrible. The chin strap has been the only thing that has solved the mask leakage problem with a full face mask for me, but I had to quit within a week due to jaw pain, which kept getting worse by the day. The pain was so bad I had a difficult time eating and lost more weight - which was not a good thing, since I'm nearly 30 pounds under ideal weight. I could hardly open my mouth wide enough to brush my teeth. It has been about two months since I quit using the chin strap, and my jaw still has largely recovered, but not totally. I still can't eat hard nuts and have a hard time opening my mouth wide enough to eat a banana or a plum.

I have not tried taping my mouth as an alternative. But that's not a very attractive choice for me, as I have two medications I take in the middle of the night, so I'd have to remove and re-take after midnight. But without the chin strap, I am fighting with an AHI of 10-30+.

[Okie bipap]

I posted the following in regard to one of your other posts:

I strongly recommend you get a firm foam cervical collar. This will help to hold your chin up when you sleep and prevent your jaw from dropping. I get ours from Walmart. I use a 4 inch collar and my wife uses a 3 1/2 inch collar.
: https://www.walmart.com/search/?query=d ... dmi%20firm

Instead of constantly jumping on someone else's thread, start one of your own describing the problem you are having.

[Uff Da]

Instead of constantly jumping on someone else's thread, start one of your own describing the problem you are having.

Sorry if you thought I was asking for advice. I wasn't. I was just replying to the OP's questions and comments in the first post. I didn't notice at the time that the original post was months old, though the previous post was current.

So I was wondering if the chin strap might be contributing to the problem. I will be going to my dentist to check it out, but wanted to get the forum's advice.

Anyone else have TMJ issues? How did you deal with it?

Can you successfully tape your mouth without using a chin strap which affects your jaw?