Occlusion

Occlusion

In terms of dentistry, occlusion is the mutual contact between the teeth of the upper and lower arches. In other words, it is a way of aligning the teeth of the upper jaw with the teeth of the lower jaw. Occlusive disease is therefore a disorder in the work of the teeth, masticatory muscles and sometimes the temporomandibular joints, and it results in excessively tense muscles responsible for the chewing process, excessive tooth wear and often pain, including headaches and neck pain.

Symptoms of occlusive disease

• discomfort when chewing (one of the first symptoms of this disease),
• abrasion of teeth and chipping on the enamel,
• teeth grinding (BRUSSISM),
• teeth hypersensitivity to thermal stimuli,
• loosening and displacement of teeth,
• excessive tension in the masticatory muscles,
• frequent morning headaches and neck aches
• flaking of teeth and damage to the prosthetic restorations in the oral cavity,
• jumping and crackling in the temporomandibular joint

The symptoms of occlusive disease, often unnoticed, can lead to serious health consequences, not only for the mouth and teeth.

Occlusal problems build up over the years. The masticatory organ dysfunction is multi-stage and may not cause major discomfort at first.

The main causes of occlusive disease include:

• malocclusion
• body posture defects
• parafunctions (biting nails, biting lips, cheeks, pencils and bruxism – grinding and clenching teeth)
• missing teeth that cause other teeth to move, resulting in improper contacts between the teeth of the upper and lower arch
• incorrectly fitted prosthetic restoration – crown, bridge or prosthesis
• incorrectly adjusted fillings in the teeth
• incorrectly erupted “wisdom teeth”
• strong, long-term stress.

Treatment of occlusive disease

The most important stage in the treatment of occlusive disease is proper diagnostics consisting in examining not only the teeth but the entire musculoskeletal system

One of the stages of the treatment of occlusive disease is the use of splint therapy (e.g. MAGO splint). It is a transparent overlay on the teeth that prevents them from clenching, thus causing muscle relaxation and stabilization in the temporomandibular joints. The overlay is made after the impression is taken.

Properly conducted splint therapy most often requires follow-up visits, often supported by physiotherapy treatments

After the splinotherapy stage, appropriate treatment, equilibration (bite correction), orthodontic or prosthetic treatment are implemented