What are TMJ Disorders?

Disorders of the jaw joint and chewing
muscles—and how people respond to
them—vary widely. Researchers generally
agree that the conditions fall into three main
categories:
1 Myofascial pain, the most common
temporomandibular disorder, involves discomfort
or pain in the muscles that control
jaw function.
2 Internal derangement of the joint involves
a displaced disc, dislocated jaw, or injury to
the condyle.
3 Arthritis refers to a group of
degenerative/inflammatory joint disorders
that can affect the temporomandibular joint.
A person may have one or more of these
conditions at the same time. Some people
have other health problems that co-exist with
TMJ disorders, such as chronic fatigue
syndrome, sleep disturbances or fibromyalgia,
a painful condition that affects muscles
and other soft tissues throughout the body. It
is not known whether these disorders share a
common cause.