Grinding teeth at night

Introduction Bruxism refers to the behavior of an unconscious upper and lower teeth grinding or biting each other while sleeping or waking up. Because the teeth are often accompanied by a "squeaky" sound, usually called "biting teeth." Because it occurs mostly during nighttime sleep, it is also called "night molars." People between the ages of 6 and 13 are in the period of changing teeth, and there will be molars in order to adapt to the upper and lower teeth. However, if adolescents and adults who have passed the tooth-changing period often have molars, it is a pathological condition. Grinding teeth not only affect the aesthetics of the teeth, but also destroy the quality of the teeth and damage the gums causing bleeding or tooth loss.

Cause

Grinding at night can occur at any age and is more common in children and adolescents. It is a manifestation of sleep disorders. Night molars are related to three factors: psychological factors, occlusal factors, and blood pressure fluctuations.

According to the folks, the night molars are caused by "worms" in the patient's stomach, but this is not accurate and comprehensive. The occurrence of nocturnal molars is mainly related to three types of factors.

1. Psychological factors: When the brain is in a state of high excitement and tension for a long time, the various emotions of the patient can be subconsciously expressed in the sleep state, and the night molar is one of the manifestations.

2. Dental factors: including dental malformations, missing teeth, tooth defects or excessive length, unilateral chewing, etc., can cause occlusion disorders. Therefore, in deep sleep, the body will increase the subconscious jaw movement, by rubbing the teeth this self-correcting action, in order to achieve the bite balance.

3. Other factors: parasites, blood pressure fluctuations, calcium deficiency, gastrointestinal disorders, genetic factors, etc., may cause night molars.

an examination

Related inspection

Body organ function and nutrition full physical examination

Examination and diagnosis of night molars:

1. The patient has typical molars or clenched teeth during sleep, or subconsciously does these repetitive movements when awake, accompanied by a squeaking sound.

2. Severe bruxism can cause heavy wear on the face and adjacent faces.

3. Severe bruxism can lead to periodontal destruction, which causes the teeth to loosen, shift, the gums shrink, the teeth "lengthen", and the alveolar bone shrinks.

4. People with bruxism continue to grind teeth for a long time. Due to long-term molar grinding, enamel and even dentin can be damaged, resulting in sore teeth when eating.

Differential diagnosis

Symptoms of confusing teeth at night:

Intestinal parasites cause molars: These molars are mostly caused by aphids and aphids. Aphids are still the most common parasites in the human body, especially children. Because they do not pay attention to hygiene, they often have parasitic mites. The mites are parasitic in the small intestine of the human body. They not only plunder the body's nutrients, but also stimulate the intestinal wall, secrete toxins, cause indigestion, faint pain around the umbilical abdomen, and insomnia, irritability and molars. The mites usually parasitize in the human large intestine. When a person falls asleep, it creeps up to the anus to lay eggs, causing an anal itching, making people feel restless and often have molars. Deworming treatment for this often eliminates the molars.

Autonomic nerve disorder causes molars: children with vitamin D deficiency rickets, due to calcium and phosphorus metabolism disorders in the body, can cause decalcification, muscle soreness and autonomic nervous disorder, often sweating, night terror, irritability and Grind your teeth at night. If these children are supplemented with cod liver oil and calcium tablets, they are usually allowed to bask in the sun. Then, the condition of grinding at night will gradually decrease.

Mental factors lead to molars: Some people do not grind their teeth at night, but if they have just watched a horrible and intense martial arts film or novel before going to sleep, they will have nighttime molars because the nervous system is too excited. Sometimes I have been sleeping for too long at night, because of the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the brain tissue and insufficient oxygen supply. This stimulation can also cause teeth grinding at night. Therefore, it is not appropriate to watch too tight movies, TV or reading materials before going to sleep, and pay attention to sleep hygiene, do not sleep.

Neuroticism causes molars: This molar is the same as sleepwalking and is an awakening disorder. Arousal stimulation from inside and outside the body, activated by the activation system to activate the brainstem chewing exercise area, resulting in masticatory muscle activity.

Dinner is full and causes molars: In recent years, peoples work and life have gradually accelerated, and the phenomenon of breakfast sloppy, lunch, and dinner is very common. Unreasonable dietary distribution not only affects the absorption and utilization of nutrients, but also increases the burden on the digestive tract. Even when you fall asleep, there is a large amount of food that is finally digested in the gastrointestinal tract. The entire digestive system needs to be forced to "plus night shifts", work continuously, and even the masticatory muscles are mobilized to involuntarily contract and cause molars. Therefore, dinner should not be full, pay attention to appropriate activities after meals.

The material in this site is intended to be of general informational use and is not intended to constitute medical advice, probable diagnosis, or recommended treatments.