Thismaterialmustnotbeusedforcommercialpurposes,orinany

hospitalormedicalfacility.Failuretocomplymayresultinlegal
action.

MandibularDislocation
WHATYOUNEEDTOKNOW:

Whatisamandibulardislocation?
Amandibulardislocationistheseparationofyourmandible(lowerjaw)fromyourtemporomandibularjoint
(TMJ).Whenthishappens,yourlowerjawdoesnotgobackinplaceonitsown.

Whatcausesamandibulardislocation?
Openingyourmouthtoowide:Thismayhappenwhenyoulaugh,yawn,sneeze,takelargebites,orvomit.
SomeopenmouthordentalproceduresmayweakenthemusclesaroundyourTMJandleadtodislocation.
Toothproblems:Teeththataremissing,worn,ornotlinedupcorrectlycanpreventyourjawfromworking
correctly.
Trauma:Mandibulardislocationmaybecausedbyablowtoyourchinwhileyourmouthisopen.Thisoccurs
mostoftenincar,motorcycle,orbicycleaccidents.
Unstablejoint:Thismaybecausedifyourjawmusclesareweakorbecometootight.Seizuresandcertain
medicinesmaycauseweakjawmuscles.

Whatarethesignsandsymptomsofamandibulardislocation?
Dimplinginfrontofyourear
Drooling
Inabilitytoopenorcloseyourmouth,ormoveyourjawfromsidetoside
Painandswellinginfrontofyourear
Teeththatdonotlineup
Troublespeaking,eating,ordrinking
Unequalsidesofyourface

Howisamandibulardislocationdiagnosed?
Yourhealthcareproviderwillexamineyourjawandface.Hewillaskaboutyourothermedicalconditionsand
medicinesyouaretaking.Tellyourhealthcareproviderifyourjawbonehadbeendislocatedbefore.Hewilllook
forsignsofamandibulardislocationorotherproblems,suchasabrokenbone.Youmayalsohaveanyofthe
following:

Xray:XraypictureswillhelpyourhealthcareproviderseeyourTMJandcheckforswellingorbrokenbones.
CTscan:ThistestisalsocalledaCATscan.Anxraymachineusesacomputertotakepicturesofyourjaw.
Thepicturesmayshowifyourjawisdislocated.Youmaybegivenadyebeforethepicturesaretakentohelp
healthcareprovidersseethepicturesbetter.Tellthehealthcareproviderifyouhaveeverhadanallergic
reactiontocontrastdye.

Howisamandibulardislocationtreated?
Medicines:

Anesthesia:Thismedicineputsyoutosleepsoyouarecomfortablewhileyourjawboneisputinplace.It
maybeashotofnumbingmedicineormaybegiventhroughanIV.Itmayalsobegivenasagasthatyou
breathewhileyouareasleep.Yourhealthcareproviderwillworkwithyoutodecidewhichanesthesiais
bestforyou.
Musclerelaxer:Thesehelptorelaxthemusclesofyourjaw.
Sedative:Thismedicineisgiventohelpyoustaycalmandrelaxed.
NSAIDs:Thesemedicinesdecreaseswellingandpain.YoucanbuyNSAIDswithoutadoctor'sorder.Ask
yourhealthcareproviderwhichmedicineisrightforyou,andhowmuchtotake.Takeasdirected.NSAIDs
cancausestomachbleedingorkidneyproblemsifnottakencorrectly.
Sclerosingagent:ThismedicineisgivenasashotintoyourTMJ.Thishelpstightenyourjawand
preventsitfrommovingtoomuch.Youmayneedafixationdeviceaftertheuseofasclerosingagent.

Fixationdevices:Youmayhavewiresorelasticbandstopreventyoufrommovingyourjaw.
Manualreduction:Thisisaproceduretoputyourjawbackintoitsnormalposition.Youmayneedafixation
deviceafteryourmanualreduction.
Surgery:Ifothertreatmentshavenotworked,youmayneedsurgery.Surgerymaybedonetotightenthe
ligamentsaroundyourTMJandmakeitmorestable.

HowcanImanagemysymptoms?
Supportyourjaw:Forseveraldaysafteryourdislocation,trynottoopenyourmouthwidely,suchaswhen
youyawn.Ifyoudo,supportyourjaw.Ifyourjawhasdislocatedbefore,youmayneedachinstrapor
bandagetohelpkeepitfromhappeningagain.
Eatsoftfoods:Youmayneedtoeatonlysoftfoodsforsometimeafteryourjawisputbackinplace.Soft
foodsincludeapplesauce,babyfood,bananas,cookedcereal,cottagecheese,eggs,gelatin,pudding,and
yogurt.
Useice:Icehelpsdecreaseswellingandpain.Icemayalsohelppreventtissuedamage.Useanicepack,or
putcrushediceinaplasticbag.CoveritwithatowelandplaceitoveryourTMJareafor15to20minutes
everyhourorasdirected.
Gotophysicaltherapy:Youmayneedphysicaltherapyifyouhavehadmultiplejawdislocations.Aphysical
therapistwillworkwithyoutohelpmakethemusclesinyourjawstronger.Thismayhelptostopyour
jawbonefromdislocatingagain.

Whataretherisksofmandibulardislocation?
Surgeryputsyouatriskofdentalorguminjuries,andstretchedjawligamentsandmuscles.Youmayhave
pain,temporarynerveproblems,ankylosis(jointstiffening),orbleedinginthejawjoint.Yourtopandbottom
 teethmaynotlineupcorrectly.Evenaftertreatment,yourjawmaydislocateagain.
Withouttreatment,yourmandibulardislocationmayleadtofurtherproblems.Yourpainmaybecomeworse
andyoumayhavetroubleeatingandtalking.Scartissuemayformaroundyourdislocatedjawbone,which
makesputtingyourjawbackinplacemoredifficult.Youmayhavefacialnerveproblems,hearingloss,and
cranial(skull)injuriesfromthedislocatedbone.Ifthedislocatedbonegoesintoyourskull,youmayhavelife
threateningdamage.

WhenshouldIcontactmyhealthcareprovider?
Yoursymptomsdonotgetbetter,orgetworse.
Youhavequestionsorconcernsaboutyourconditionorcare.

WhenshouldIseekimmediatecare?
Yourjawbonemovesoutofplaceagain.

CareAgreement
Youhavetherighttohelpplanyourcare.Learnaboutyourhealthconditionandhowitmaybetreated.Discuss
treatmentoptionswithyourcaregiverstodecidewhatcareyouwanttoreceive.Youalwayshavetherightto
refusetreatment.Theaboveinformationisaneducationalaidonly.Itisnotintendedasmedicaladvicefor
individualconditionsortreatments.Talktoyourdoctor,nurseorpharmacistbeforefollowinganymedicalregimen
toseeifitissafeandeffectiveforyou.
2016TruvenHealthAnalyticsInc.InformationisforEndUser'suseonlyandmaynotbesold,redistributedorotherwiseusedforcommercial
purposes.AllillustrationsandimagesincludedinCareNotesarethecopyrightedpropertyofA.D.A.M.,Inc.orTruvenHealthAnalytics.
Theaboveinformationisaneducationalaidonly.Itisnotintendedasmedicaladviceforindividualconditionsortreatments.Talktoyourdoctor,nurseor
pharmacistbeforefollowinganymedicalregimentoseeifitissafeandeffectiveforyou.