Treatment for Headaches and Migraines

Headaches and migraines caused by dental factors are the result of complex interactions between the way the teeth bite together, the way the jaw joints fit into the skull, and the arrangement of the very powerful chewing muscles.

Possible causes of Headaches and Migraines:

 It could just be that you are clenching or grinding your teeth together, when you’re concentrating and/or stressed. It is much more of a problem if this is happening at night, because you can clench and grind your teeth with many times the usual chewing forces when you’re asleep. You’re much more likely to do this when you’re under stress.

It could be that your bite is unbalanced, so that in order to get your teeth together to chew effectively, your muscles pull your jaw joint out of the best position. This puts the muscles under greater stress, which makes headache and migraine pain much more likely. It can get even worse when you add stress, clenching, and grinding, into the equation. You probably won’t have noticed that your bite is not quite right, because it’s always been like that. You have got used to the way your teeth meet, so that you go straight into that position without thinking about it. But that means that the muscles are continually under strain, and don't get a chance to relax and recover.

 So what can be done for Headaches and Migraines?

The good news is that it’s quite easy to find out if your bite has anything to do with your headaches or migraines. This is done by making a small bite guard which stops you getting your back teeth together, so the muscles get a chance to relax. If this makes a difference, the next step is to do an in-depth analysis of the bite, muscles and jaw joint, to see what would be the best way of solving the problem in the long term. This could be either: a full bite guard; adjusting your bite by shaping the teeth to the proper bite; or possibly straightening teeth by orthodontics.

So, if you have headaches or migraines which are a problem to you, please tell your dentist!

For costs for relief of Headaches and Migraines, have a look at our Pricing page.