Painful jaw but no tooth pain?

[Pigriver]

My jaw hurts when I eat or open my mouth, near the joint really. No reason for this as far as I can see/feel. None of my teeth hurt and both wisdom teeth have been removed, no missing filling, swelling, tenderness etc.
But it bloody hurts to eat!
Is it worth going to the dentist? What could they do? It's been hurting for 4 days now but I really don't want to pay the £80 consultation fee to be told it's not my teeth....but what if it is.....argh!

Any I ideas?

Oh dear that's rubbish
I'm going through similar, turns out I clench my jaw at night. Dentist made me a mouthguard to wear. It hasn't made a difference yet though but am persevering. I've been quite stressed lately, are you?
Can you arrange to see an NHS dentist, £80 a consultation is a lot!

I was going to say the same as Teresa. My mouth guard definitely helps.

I'm a dentist and have the same problem agree with Teresa. You may be clenching or grinding at night.
Teresa, what sort of mouth guard do you have? There are a few different sorts. Did you get it on the NHS? Did you pay for it? I'm just curious how other dentists do these, A few only do them privately as its a lot cheaper for patients but some people don't like this.

Also, if it's not your teeth it's your jaw and dentists are experts in both, I'm confident they would be able to easily diagnose the problem.Dentists don't just deal with teeth alone. I initially went to my GP for my jaw joint pain and they sent me straight to the dentist. Said they are the "doctors of the face"
Good luck

I'm a jaw clencher too. My dentist made me a mouth guard but I can't wear it - it's too uncomfortable.

Sorry x post Mrs Morton
Mine is pretty chunky clear plastic, pretty tight ( my dentist is going to adjust it a bit for me next week to loosen off ) cost me £74, I've got an NHS dentist.
I wish it would start doing its job, I have toothache style pain on and off all day!

My dentist is private as there is a lack of nhs dentists in our area. I am 37 weeks pregnant so nhs treatment wold be free if only I could access it!
To be fair my dentist is fab and I don't mind paying as long as there is something she can do.
I don't think I clench/grind as I am barely sleeping atm! I might pop in tomorrow and see if I can see someone.

Last question! Are you in England? I only ask because £74 isn't an NHS charge so I wonder if your dentist did it privately to save you paying he NHS fee of £220 odd.

Do you manage to wear it all night? When I do, my jaw is better (can't open wide enough to eat a sandwich usually and click is audible across the room). It's tight as fuck though so I don't often manage it. Aargh, difficult problem!! And I've got all the tools and stuff to hand!!!

Could it be an ear infection then?

I had this (with other weird symptoms including a swollen and painful foot with no injury/wound) and it turned out to be rhumatic fever!!! Most unexpected - suggest you see a GP.

I have a mouth guard for clenching. I've had it about 2 weeks and love it already it makes me relax my jaw. nHS dentist made it privately cost £60

Hmm no ear pain either... Literally just in the jaw joint on one side. When I bite down my teeth hurt but not specifically one but the whole side. Tried poking and prodding to locate an offending tooth but each individually is fine.

Mrs Morton yes I'm in Scotland. That was kind of her to do that then!
I wear it all night no problem even though it's pretty tight. My only problem is it's not helping the pain but as I say need to persevere with it every night, I wasn't bothering because it wasn't helping (impatient fool)

Hi Pig,
It sounds like Temporomandibular joint disorders (TMJ and TMD). I can't attach a link but i had this and saw my dentist. He said it was a stress thing, like teeth grinding and he gave me several exercises to do which realigned my jaw. It solved the problem straight away. I had been to my doctor before because the pain was at the joint area nearest my ear. When I rang my dentist he knew exactly what was causing the pain. Hope that helps.

I don't know what the NHS charges are in Scotland Teresa so it might just be how much it costs!

Wear it lady!!!

www.migraine-dentistry.co.uk/migraine_dentistry.html

Your dentist (rather than gp) will be able to tell if you've been grinding/clenching your jaw.

I'm a grinder and clencher. To the extent I had to have my upper molars filed down and my bottom ones crowned becaused I'd cracked them with the pressure of my clenching. Terrible jaw pain and the headaches were phenomenal...

I had an NTI brace fitted.

It covers the front four upper teeth and stops your teeth from touching, so you can't damage them further. You can't bite down using your front teeth (your brain just won't let you) which relieves the tension pain in the jaw.

Traditional guards still let you bite down which won't stop the jaw pain/headaches.

Point taken Mrs m

I had it a few years ago. TMJ. I was clenching/grinding. I've actually damaged my teeth. I had them fixed and now wear a guard when sleeping.

Like you, I was convinced I wasn't grinding. My teeth said otherwise.

It might also be worth seeing a Physio that specialises in tmj dysfunction
And acupuncture can also help I m lead to believe