tmj

Characteristics of malpractice for TMJ Surgery

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An interesting article titled “Characteristics of Medical Malpractice Claims Involving Temporomandibular Joint Surgery in the United States” appears in the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery written by M. Green and et. al. (April 14, 2022, vol. 80, no. 7, pp. 1153-1157). The article seeks to explore the characteristics of medical malpractice claims that involve temporomandibular joint (TMJ) surgery by oral and maxillofacial surgeons in the U.S. In the article the authors conducted a study using data provided from OMS National Insurance Company, RRG (OMSNIC), which represents approximately 5,000 oral and maxillofacial surgeons in the United States. Closed malpratice claims data over the time period from from 1, 2016, through December 31, 2020 that was for claims against oral and maxillofacial surgeons in the Unites States with insurance coverage from OMSNIC was studied. Such claims were limited to lawsuits and … Read more

9 Things You Should Stop Doing if You Have TMJ

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You might not know much about TMJ, but you use them a lot each time you chew, talk, or swallow. TMJ is temporomandibular joints that connect your jawbone to your skull. When something goes wrong with your jaw muscles and jaw joints because of overuse, jaw injury, or inflammation due to arthritis, TMJ disorders occur. If you have TMJ pain or disorders, you may have to undergo TMJ pain treatment. Your doctor will work with you to reduce your pain and improve the way your jaw functions. In this article, we’ll discuss the things you should stop doing if you have TMJ pain. By avoiding the following activities, you can reduce the stress on your temporomandibular joint and speed up the recovery process: 1. Avoid Clenching Your Teeth Clenching your teeth, also called bruxism,may occur while sleeping or during the day. … Read more

A Study of Outcomes Related to Wisdom Teeth Removal

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An interesting article titled “A Prospective Study of Clinical Outcomes Related to Third Molar Removal or Retention,” appears in the American Journal of Public Health (April 2014, Vol 104, No. 4) written by Greg J. Huang and et al. The article is a companion article to another also on wisdom teeth in the April 2014 issue of the journal. I discussed the companion article last week in the blog post http://blog.teethremoval.com/practice-based-wisdom-teeth-removal-study/. The article opens by mentioning the controversy surrounding the removal of wisdom teeth. On one side some have advocated for wisdom teeth to be removed to prevent future pathology and minimize risks, others have advocated for wisdom teeth to be removed to prevent lower incisor crowding, and others have argued for wisdom teeth to be removed to prevent periodontal pathology. On the other side some have advocated for wisdom … Read more

Chewing Gum Linked to Headaches

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An interesting study and findings regarding a link between headaches and gum chewing has come from Tel Aviv University. The article was published in Pediatric Neurology and looked at 30 patients between 6 and 19 with chronic headache and who were big gum chewers. The patients were told to stop chewing gum. After 1 month, nineteen of the patients had their headache go away and 7 additional patients in the group had a decrease in the severity and frequency of their headaches. Twenty six of the patients were then told to go back to chewing gum like they used to and they all said their previous symptoms returned within days. The researchers speculate that temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction may be the likely trigger at bay. The researchers believe that TMJ overuse is causing the headaches. Other possibilities were suggested such as … Read more

Potential Risks of Surgery for Wisdom Teeth (Third Molars)

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M. Anthony Pogrel in his article “What Are the Risks of Operative Intervention?” in the Journal of Oral and Maxilofacial Surgery vol. 70, pp. 33-36, 2012, suppl. 1, goes into complications associated with removing impacted wisdom teeth (third molars). I have previously explored this topic in detail over at http://www.teethremoval.com/complications.html. Although I did a poor job of distinguishing actual complications from negligence. In the article, Pogrel describes how studies have indicated that around 10% (1 in 10) of people undergoing removal of third molars may suffer from a complication. However, most of these complications are mild and will completely resolve in time. Pogrel states “Complications from M3 removal can be divided into 2 groups: those that are short-lived and self limiting, including bleeding, inflammatory complications such as surgical site infection and alveolar osteitis, or “dry socket,” drug reactions, displaced crowns … Read more