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Do you sleep soundly at night, or are you unconsciously grinding or clenching your teeth while you rest? If you struggle with a nightly teeth grinding problem, or bruxism, the consequences can be serious, and they can worsen over time. At first, you may experience some concern over pain and stiffness in your face and jaw, as well as problems with sore or sensitive teeth. In time, the pressure from grinding and clenching can cause real damage to your enamel, which can make dental work necessary. Your Mansfield, TX dentist is prepared to help you if you struggle with this problem. We can provide you with a guard to keep your smile safe, and we can also offer treatment options to restore teeth that have been damaged.

You Can Do Serious Harm To Your Teeth By Grinding And Clenching Your Jaw

The average person can apply serious force when they bite down. This allows us to bite and chew through tough foods, but that pressure can be trouble for your smile if you have problems with bruxism. Over time, the wear and tear from grinding and clenching can flatten teeth, leave them misshapen, or even cause chips or cracks. If this occurs, you can wind up needing cosmetic dental work to regain your smile, or you may even need dental crowns to restore badly damaged teeth.

Arranging Treatment For Bruxism And TMD

Through oral appliance therapy, our dental practice is able to help patients who struggle with bruxism as well as TMD. These issues are often linked – over time, your jaw clenching and grinding can cause problems for the alignment of your joints. It is also possible for existing problems with TMD to trigger a person’s teeth grinding. Oral appliances are used to help patients with jaw alignment troubles, and to protect a person’s teeth if they suffer from bruxism.

What Can You Do About Dental Damage That Has Already Formed?

The severity of damage to your teeth will affect the treatment approach recommended by your dentist. For damage that is serious enough to affect your bite function or oral health, restorative dental work will be called for. If you are concerned about wear and tear but do not have oral health issues related to the harm, we can explore cosmetic treatment options like the placement of porcelain veneers, which require less preparatory work than crowns.

Talk To Your Mansfield, TX Dentist About Nightly Grinding And Clenching

Nightly problems with teeth grinding and clenching can lead to trouble with your appearance as well as your oral health. If you suspect that this has become a problem for you, talk to your Mansfield, TX dentist’s office about treatment! We can help protect your teeth from further harm, and we can also offer treatment if dental damage has already occurred. To find out more, reach out to Mansfield Dental Associates by calling 817-473-6227.