What to do if you grind your teeth at night

Teeth grinding at night has caused great harm to many patients. It not only affects the body, but also leads to a decline in sleep quality. Therefore, we have to find a way to treat teeth grinding at night. We must first understand what teeth grinding at night is and what the causes of teeth grinding at night are. Only by understanding the causes of teeth grinding at night can we make targeted treatments.

There are many ways to treat nocturnal teeth grinding, so patients who grind their teeth at night can choose the treatment that suits them according to their actual situation, such as reducing brain excitement and using chicken relaxation therapy.

There are many treatments for bruxism, and the main clinical purpose is to reduce the damage caused by bruxism to the occlusal surface of the teeth and alleviate the symptoms of muscles and joints. The principle is to block the cause of the disease and reduce the damage.

1. Psychotherapy

There are indeed psychological factors that cause excessive tension in the jaw muscles. Eliminate tension, relieve unnecessary worries, and arrange work reasonably. Take diazepam tablets orally if necessary (may cause dependence).

2. Reduce brain excitement

Resting and relaxing before going to bed, doing proper gymnastics, avoiding stimulating foods and smoking, and improving the sleeping environment can help reduce the brain's excitement. Mobilize the patient's self-awareness and self-control psychological effect to reduce the occurrence of bruxism. The effect is very small.

3. Muscle relaxation therapy

Excessive tension in the jaw muscles is one of the causes of bruxism. Relieving excessive muscle tension during treatment is a necessary means to control bruxism. Commonly used methods include: the use of muscle relaxants; physical therapy, training of the physiological functions of the masticatory muscles; massage; audio-visual cues and other methods. The effect is very small.

4. Wake-up stimulation during sleep

Through biofeedback, the patient is awakened by electrical signals such as sound when teeth grinding occurs, thereby temporarily stopping teeth grinding. Some researchers have performed temporary afferent electrical stimulation on the lips, and the results showed that it was effective in controlling bruxism. However, this method interferes with the sleep of patients and their cohabitants and is not effective in the long term.

5. Adjust occlusal treatment

By grinding a small amount of tooth tissue, removing occlusal interference and premature occlusal contact, and establishing an occlusal balance, a physiological balance between the teeth, jaws, masticatory muscles, and temporomandibular joints can be achieved, thus eliminating bruxism. For patients with malocclusion, orthodontics or restoration are performed first.

6. Intestinal deworming treatment

Ascaricidal treatment reduces the peristalsis of intestinal parasites and irritates the intestinal wall. Bruxism caused by roundworms may occur in children for hygiene reasons, but the chance of bruxism caused by roundworms in adolescents and adults is almost non-existent. Therefore, deworming treatments are not effective for adolescents and adults.

7. Occlusal splint treatment

Make a dental pad and wear it on your jaw before going to bed at night. Remove it in the morning to relieve muscle tension. It is currently the most easily accepted by doctors and patients. It is effective in preventing tooth wear but cannot cure bruxism.

8. Correct bad habits of the dental and maxillofacial system

Such as unilateral chewing, biting pencils, and chewing gum frequently.

9. Medication

The main focus is on trying to adjust dentofacial movement disorders and muscle tension disorders.

Topical botulinum toxin (BTX) is effective in treating movement disorders. BTX was injected into the masseter muscles on both sides of patients who bruxed their teeth for a long time. As a result, most patients stopped grinding their teeth immediately to 4 weeks after the injection, but some patients also developed difficulty swallowing.

Using L-dopa to regulate the central nervous system can significantly reduce the number of times people grind their teeth, but it can easily cause nausea, vomiting, insomnia, arrhythmia, and mental illness. It should only be considered when other treatments for bruxism have failed.

10. Chinese Medicine

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that dentition mostly belongs to heat in the stomach meridian, which can be treated with acupuncture, ear acupuncture, massage and other means. You can also take Xuanfeng Powder to clear away heat and kill insects: betel nut, tangerine peel, licorice, and black ugly (fried), grind them into fine powder, make pills with refined honey, take 2 grams each time, twice a day, with warm boiled water.

Above, we introduced what nocturnal bruxism is. We know that nocturnal bruxism causes great harm to patients, not only affecting the body but also the quality of sleep. Above, we introduced in detail the methods of treating nocturnal bruxism. We can use medication or traditional Chinese medicine to deal with nocturnal bruxism.