Symptoms

Symptoms of temporomandibular (TM) disorders are usually mild and temporary and typically do not get worse with time. Common symptoms include:

• Joint pain when the jaw is moving, as when opening the mouth widely, chewing, or yawning. Such pain can develop:
  • Usually on one side of the jaw, but it can develop on both sides.
  • Either gradually or suddenly, as when biting down on something hard or following a blow to the jaw.
• Muscle pain or tenderness in the face, ear, head, neck, or shoulders.
• Headaches. In children with TM disorders, these are often related to grinding the teeth (bruxism).
• Clicking, popping, cracking, or grating that is painful and occurs when opening the jaw (may be a sign of disc displacement). Clicking or popping noises without pain are common and do not require treatment.
• The jaw locking in an open or closed position or not opening wide (disc displacement). If the jaw locks for more than a few moments, a muscle spasm usually follows.

See a picture of areas typically affected by TM disorder pain.

Sometimes pain around the ear, with pressure or ringing in the ears (tinnitus), develops with TM disorders. Some people with these symptoms report that they also have hearing loss, although test results show that their hearing is normal.

Symptoms often go away on their own, and they may recur over time without getting much better or worse. Occasional discomfort in the jaw joint or chewing muscles is quite common and usually is not a cause for concern.

Chronic pain

Some people with TM disorders have facial or jaw pain that lasts a long time (chronic). These people may try several treatment methods and have little improvement. While treatment can appear successful to a doctor, pain lingers. This may be due to the lasting psychological and biological impact of chronic pain, which can lead to or intensify depression, anxiety, a sense of helplessness, and biochemical changes in the body that perpetuate pain.