Posted by Mary Ann on February 11, 2002 at 10:53:41:
In Reply to: TMJ? posted by Heather on February 10, 2002 at 11:40:18:
At the IHS conference last summer, one of the lectures dealt with TMJ in horn players, and especially on the lack of decent treatment for it. The presenter ended up doing an unplanned demonstration on an audience member who had severe TMJ that had not been helped by the myriad of treatments that she had had for it. The presenter showed her how to open and close her jaw properly and corrected the problem _on_the_spot_. This particular person responded to the presenter's standard treatment: she had to push in on her lower jaw with her hand, while she moved it up and down. She had been in the habit of protruding her lower jaw, all the time, causing it to be mis-aligned.
The person with the problem was going to have to go home and practice and get in new habits, but the pain and clicking were gone instantly. When investigating solutions to problems like TMJ, it is always to your advantage to do some extensive research before selecting a treatment option. Sometimes it's not the person with the most advanced degrees who has the best solution. You need to find out how often the treatment results in an actual cure. I just happened to observe this one in person.
MA