Prof. (Dr.) Somnath Saha
Instructions for Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) Syndrome
1) Brush your teeth at night and in the morning after breakfast.
2) Always chew and bite equally on both sides of the jaw while eating.
3) Do not open your mouth too wide.
4) Eat soft food like soup, juice, porridge (gangi) for few days and avoid hard food like raw carrot, apple, fried crunchy foods and non-vegetarian foods.
5) Don’t take big bits; make food into small pieces, so that over strain on the jaw is avoided.
6) Not to chew the chewing gum.
7) Try to protect the ear from exposure to cold.
8) Avoid clenching or forceful biting or finger nail biting.
9) During the day keep your jaw relaxed and teeth apart.
10) Rest your tongue between top and bottom teeth.
11) Keep cotton in the ear when you go out in the cold breeze, or sitting under the fan, or air-conditioned room and while travelling in a bus or riding motorbike.
12) Mobile phone should not be used on the affected side.
13) Give moist heat fomentation to the joint.
14) Massage the areas around the affected jaw and the ear to relieve muscle tightness, several times a day.
15) Put a clean finger inside the mouth, massage and press firmly over the muscles close to the joint.
16) Massage the muscle on the side of the neck and the shoulder to reduce muscle tension.
17) Avoid constant grinding of the teeth.
18) If there is any tooth or occlusion problem consult the dentist.