Jaw pain

Posted , 10 users are following.

I know that jaw pain can be an indication of GCA. But I'm fairly confident that is not what I have. For the last month I have been experiencing a tremendous amount of jaw pain on my right side. What happens is I wake up in the morning with jaw pain and it stops hurting within about an hour or two. Since that's the only symptom I have i assume it's from me grinding my teeth while I sleep. Here lately the pain has continued throughout the day and it's gotten to the point where it's difficult to eat I even feel it in my ear. I have an appointment next week with my dentist. This isn't the first time I've grinded my teeth at night, I've just never had the jaw pain like this. So I have tried the mouth guards before and have had no success keeping them in my mouth when I sleep. So that is really not an option for me.

All this being said my question to all of you is this: Is it at all possible that my jaw pain could be a PMR pain instead of from grinding my teeth?

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  • Posted

    I haven't had any jaw pain, but often woke up with an ear-ache, always on the side of my head that I was sleeping on.  Thankfully it's now in the past, but seemed surely to be pmr-related in my case.

    If you are grinding teeth though, take action to prevent teeth damage, and be alert so as not to do anything that causes the pain in your jaw.  If you suspect it might be pmr related, take note of how this symptom responds to any adjustments that you make to your pred dosage!

  • Posted

    Hi, I have the same question ??

    Wondering if the jaw pain could be from grinding my teeth since I've seem to be doing that a lot lately from...

  • Posted

    Unlikely if it is only on one side. Pain associated with PMR/GCA woud be expected to happen when you are using your jaw and tongue (chewing or talking for example) and go away.

    A tempromandibular problem sounds rather more likely - do either of these links help? The first is aimed at doctors so is a bit medical-speak. 

    https://patient.info/doctor/temporomandibular-joint-dysfunction-and-pain-syndromes

    https://patient.info/health/temporomandibular-joint-disorders

  • Posted

    I have had GCA since last June and thankfully the prednisolone removed all the symptoms. The jaw pain I experienced was in relation to only when I chewed food! So when I got pain on chewing on the left, thinking it was a dental issue I switched to chewing on the right and got the same pain. The jaw was not painful when not eating  When I ate,I reverted to food that did not require chewing and that was okay too. However my scalp was senstive to touch and I had awful headaches. 
    • Posted

      I do not have the scalp sensitivity nor the headaches (well an occasional one) which is why I don't believe it's GCA related. Otherwise I would be calling my rheumatologist immediately. But I just wanted to double-check and make sure it couldn't possibly be PMR related. But thank you for your input. It does relieve my mind.

    • Posted

      You don't HAVE to have headaches or scalp sensitivity - not all symptoms appear in all patients. Whatever impression doctors may like to give us.

  • Posted

    I've had severe TMJ on my left side for over thirty plus years.  It gets so bad that the pain goes into my ear, shoulder and down my arm.  I've had numerous nighttime mouth gaurds, the most recent costing me $500. I use ice often to try to calm it down.  Any type of activity or light lifting has to be done with extreme caution will cause a painful flare.  Even taking walks or riding a bike for short periods of time will irritate it. The Prednisone has not made it any better. ;(

    • Posted

      Well that's good to know or bad to know depending on how you want to put it. Because I've been experiencing some really horrible neck pain and arm pain too. I suspected the neck pain was probably related but I didn't think the arm pain was. And I can feel it in my ear toof. Boy I sure hope I can get this relieved soon cuz I don't want to live with this for 30 years. It seems like my body is just really giving out on me in the past year. This is just one more thing on a long list of stuff all of it pain related.

    • Posted

      I totally understand.  Once I turned sixty, I began to fall apart.  I was really looking forward to retirement, but there has been nothing but trouble so far. Ha!
    • Posted

      I know what you mean.  It's like the warranty has run out!  Like the K-car we had once.  Five year warranty.  I swear the day we'd had it five years bits started to fall off it....  However, we can do lots to keep ourselves together.  Apparently every cell in our bodies is renewed every ten years so every day which goes by is a new opportunity to repair an aging part.

    • Posted

      and i was 49!  Coming up on my two year anniversary of having the left jaw joint removed and the tempral muscle cut and flapped over for a new disc/cusion.  My jaw no longer dislocates, but the pain in jaw, ear, head, neck and arm are horrible.  Right side is now getting pretty bad.  I couldn't wait to retire and had to go off on disability.  There are a lot of things to help like a good down pillow to shape while you sleep, the jaw caddy for iceing and a long moist heat pad that ties up like a cartoon toothache bandage.  Lots and lots of ibuprofen and pain killers.  Bite guard did more damage than good, but that is an individual thing.  I recently had to have a root canal on the left side and let me tell you, it was not a fun ordeal.  My sympathy to all who suffer and to those just beginning their journey. 

    • Posted

      No and I had never heard of it.  Had to look it up ater reading this post.  Horrible.  No, just a deteriorated back, bad knees with several surgeries and the jaw thing.  The PMR sounds very scary and I'm sorry for anyone who has to deal with it, though it looks like most people get through it in a couple of years?

    • Posted

      Apparently that is what doctors would like everyone to believe!   The charities have struggled to get the age guidelines down to "in patients over 50" but there are people younger who almost certainly have PMR - but get fobbed of with fibromyalgia or "all in your mind".

      In reality, about 25% of patients get off pred in about 2 years, about 50% take up to 4 to 6 years and the remainder take longer, some remain on pred for life. I have needed pred for nearly 8 years and that is after having had PMR for over 5 years before anyone ever acknowledged my complaints!

      And since this forum is for PMR and its closely related condition giant cell arteritis I suspect you'd find very few of us here "got through it" in 2 years! I wish...

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