Can Snoring Cause Grinding and Clenching of Teeth?

The answer is YES!

We call this Sleep Bruxism.

Not all Bruxism is related to snoring, or Obstructive Sleep Apnea, but Sleep Apnea often comes with Sleep Bruxism.

Most people are not aware they have any type or degree of Bruxism. 

One of the first responses a practitioner gets from a patient who is not aware of their Bruxism is, "I don't notice it", "I don't have it", "I'm fine."

Signs of Teeth Grinding and Clenching

Some research show that in order to compensate for the blockage of airway by the tongue, one would clench the teeth as tongue pushes up against the teeth causing these marks over a period of time. Other research show that due to stress from being unable to breath, one would protrude the jaw forward to be able to breath, and end up grinding their front teeth as a response to this stress. 

In the case of children, research is showing that vast majority of childhood Bruxism - teeth grinding - is related to sleep apnea.

Click above to read about what your Sleep Dentist sees during their screening for Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

Bruxism and Pain after Dental Treatment

When you grind and clench your teeth, you're essentially eating away on your own teeth. Along with that, the dental materials in your mouth just won't last as long. They can break, loosen up, or the seal will break without you knowing and get another cavity easier. Your old fillings and crowns you got when you were young are now disintegrating on you is pretty much expected.

Now, you started working and you're under a lot of stress. It's tough being an adult. Your dental evaluation reveals cracks and cavities in your teeth and bleeding inflamed gums during perio probing. So you get some treatment done. What should you expect?

1. no discomfort
2. some initial discomfort, but subsides in a few days or a couple weeks at most
3. no discomfort, but after a few days, gets cold sensitive, not better or getting worse.
4. uncomfortable to start, never got better, now cold/hot sensitive, getting worse.

If No.1, awesome.
If No. 2, it's also awesome.
If No. 3, it's mostly related to your bruxism. 
If No. 4, it can be related to your bruxism, but can be more than that. 

Let's look at scenario No. 3

Whenever you get dental work done, there is irritation caused by the treatment itself to the teeth and gums. So afterwards, there is a recovery phase. But research reveals that your clenching and grinding habit can put 1200lbs - 1ton of weight on your own teeth and supporting structures. That's pretty enormous. So normally, your body is very intelligent and it adapts to this chronic trauma and pressure, allowing this problem to go unnoticed. But with dental treatment, everything is irritated, fresh, and raw. So even if ok at first, it gets more irritate by the day. 

Bruxism also can increase in intensity directly after dental treatment. A stiff jaw from days, months and years of clenching/grinding is now propped open for treatment. The strain from it causes more tension and clenching.

So you are giving your teeth and gums no time or space to heal and recover after treatment. But what can you do? You're not clenching on purpose. 

Some solutions include:

• properly equillibrated night guard 
• prescription dose Ibuprofen therapy for 7-10 days
• antibiotic therapy for 7-10 days
• hydrotherapy with a hot and cold compress around the jaw and treatment area
• adjustment of the bite to relieve some pressure off the treated teeth
• good home care - cleanliness from bacteria
• laser perio therapy of the gums to reduce inflammation
• life-style change to help reduce stress - aerobic exercises, regular stretching exercises

In the case of Scenario No. 4

If your symptoms still persist after you and your dentist have done it all as described in scenario No.3, your dentist will suspect other causes or issues which could be treated with root canal therapy or even extraction as an alternative. 

In some rare cases, patients can have unique nerve and muscle anatomy which causes the teeth to hurt for a prolonged period of time due to special wiring of the nerves(again jaw issues but slightly different). This usually does not require a root canal but requires jaw therapy - the above mentioned peroperly equillibrated night guard. 

If the problem is complex, your dentist may refer you to a specialist to work in collaboration for a solution.

Advanced Orthosis Splint Therapy (MAGO) vs Night Guard

You may have all heard the phrase "Night Guard" and "Teeth Grinding" associated with it. Unfortunately, most dentists who prescribe and fabricate night guards have little or no advanced training in the area of TMJ treatment or balanced occlusion. A common night guard will help protect your teeth from wear, but may not have the balance which is needed for your jaw to relax or the kind of equillibration for  which can minimize damage to your jaw joint (TMJ), help treat mild to advanced gum/periodontal disease, and relieve headaches and soreness of the jaw and teeth. 

The splint/orthotic which I make for more complex TMJ issues is called the "Maxillary Anterior Guided Orthosis(MAGO)". The night guards which I make for my patients are fabricated with essentially the same principles, which is why it is effective. 

Some of the feedback and results I had from patients include

• comfortable..."It's more comfortable when it's in!"
• facial swelling/inflammation relieved and able to open mouth again properly - 1 week after delivered the appliance.
• jaw pain and stiffness gone..."not only is my jaw better, but even my shoulders are relaxed"
• jaw clicking disappeared..."I lived with it all my life. I can't believe it's gone!"
• teeth sensitivity has gone down..."I got this due to sensitivity after crowns. But now the sensitivity in my whole mouth which I lived with for so long has gone too!"
• sleeping much better..."it was so worth it!"
• "It's wonderful...I even stopped snoring. My whole family is happy."

If you have prolonged tooth discomfort after dental treatment, grinding clenching issues, teeth sensitivity, breaking/chipping/cracking teeth, jaw soreness, headaches/migraines, even vertigo-like symptoms frequently, consider asking about splint therapy with a device like the MAGO.

TMJ - TemporoMandibular Joint and TMD

Some of us know a "joint" to be like a "ball-in-a-socket" where there is a nook where the ball shaped object sits in and can roll around in it.

The TMJ is also a joint and is a part of our head and neck. It is made up mainly of the upper jaw, lower jaw, articular discs (like cartilage), and joint fluid. It is like our knee joint and shoulder joint, but is able to do a different movement called "translation" during wide opening. This is when the lower jaw portion of the joint (the ball) slides out of the upper jaw portion of the join (the socket). Obviously, a dislocated knee or shoulder is not good. But the lower jaw slipping out of and back into the joint space is just a regular occurrence to the TMJ when you open your mouth wide and close. If you place your fingers directly in front of your ear slightly above our earlobe area, and open wide, then close, you can feel this happening .

One thing that can happen, though, is the jaw getting stuck and unable to sink back into the joint space after opening wide. If you have ever experienced this, this could mean you have TMD - TemporoMandibular Dysfunction - and it is important to seek a Dentist for help. Another symptom to look out for is any clicking/popping/or grinding noises or feeling in that area. This could mean degeneration of the discs/cartilage due a grinding or clenching habit of the teeth, or just an imbalance in the way your teeth come together. You should seek professional help with the Dentist to consult further about the problem.

Grinding Teeth and Clenching Teeth, What Can it Do To You?

Have you heard of the term Bruxism?

If your spouse/sleep partner, parent, sibling, or next-door neighbor who you share an extremely thin wall with is telling you they hear you grinding your teeth together at night, you most likely have Bruxism. Even if you are not actively grinding with noise, but are clenching hard without significant movements, you also have Bruxism. Both can do similar damage to your teeth, gums, periodontal ligaments, bone, and the TMJ.

Below is a list of some of the damage it can cause

• Can't open your mouth wide easily
• Excessive Tooth Wear (on the biting surface)
• Sharp edges on the Teeth which can irritate your tongue or cheek
• Cracking of the Tooth
• Breaking of the Tooth
• Abfractions (a V-shaped indent at the neck of the tooth by the gums from tooth chipping off over a long period of time due to the flexure of the tooth from the excessive bite force, often confused with toothbrush abrasions which are shaped differently)
• Teeth Sensitivity
• Gum Inflammation (like when you have gingivitis and gums bleed with flossing)
• Bone loss (like when you have periodontitis and bone resorbs)
• Loosening of the teeth (gum inflammation and bone loss leads to this, just like gum disease caused by bacteria, in acute cases the ligament fibers surrounding the tooth roots swell up/get inflamed making the tooth loose)
• In acute cases, severe pain as if your nerve is infected (this is also due to the ligament fibers holding the tooth inside the bone getting inflamed all of the sudden)
• In chronic cases, slow death of the tooth nerve leading to a virtually painless abscess (I have seen lower front teeth often with an abcess when the teeth have no other problems except heavy wear from grinding)
• Bigger cheek muscles (like you've been pumping iron and your arms get buff)
• Damage to the TMJ (your joints taking on excessive pressure will get damaged, just like your knee joint can)
• Headaches/Migraines (all the tension in the muscles restrict blood flow/circulation)
• Pain and Sensitivity in the head and neck region in general, but more concentrated in the chewing muscle areas.
• If this goes on for long enough, the neck and shoulder region will also get affected - meaning will be tense and tender as well.