You might notice that you grind your teeth more than usual, but if your teeth don’t hurt, then it may not seem like much of a problem. Unfortunately, if your teeth-grinding is a sign that you have bruxism, then it may not be long before discomfort develops, along with a host of other potentially serious symptoms. Today, we examine a few things that could result from ignoring your bruxism long enough, including the significant damage it might cause to your teeth and bite function.
Wearing down your tooth structure
The problem with bruxism is that, even though you might notice your teeth-grinding habit once in a while, it occurs much more often than you realize. When you don’t notice it, you can’t control it, which means your teeth may grind together with the full force of your bite. Under this amount of pressure, it won’t take long for your teeth to wear themselves down, leading to weakened tooth structure and increased risks of tooth damage. Though the wearing down of your teeth might not be visibly obvious at first, you might notice changes in how your upper and lower teeth meet when you bite and chew due to changes in their chewing surfaces.
Breaking or fracturing one or more teeth
The wearing down of your teeth’s chewing surfaces is one form of the potential damage that bruxism can cause your teeth. If it continues, the force of grinding your teeth together can cause one or more of your teeth to fracture or break, which can put it at significantly higher risks of being lost. A fractured or broken tooth could require a custom-designed dental crown to restore, though if you continue to ignore your bruxism habit, the restoration may become damaged, as well. It’s important to seek appropriate treatment for your teeth-grinding habit before restoring the damage to your teeth that it has caused.
Inhibiting your bite’s overall function
The force of teeth-grinding may cause significant damage to your tooth structure over time, but that isn’t the only potential danger of ignoring your bruxism condition. When it continues, bruxism can also lead to excessive stress and/or damage to other areas of your bite function, including your jaw’s joints and muscles. Conditions involving damage to your jaw joints, or TMJ, can significantly inhibit your overall bite function, as well as lead to significant, often severe discomfort in your jaw and oral structures.
Find the right treatment for your bruxism
Constantly grinding your teeth together, a condition that may be classified as bruxism, can lead to several serious consequences for your oral health if it isn’t addressed promptly. To learn more, or to schedule an appointment, call Lake Orion Family Dentistry in Lake Orion, MI, today at 248-693-6213.
