Question

I have been wearing dentures for five years. Up to now there have been no problems at all. For some time now, however, I have been experiencing something like a muscle cramp. It gets to the point where I have to take the denture out at every opportunity because the back edge hurts. My teeth grind when I clench them. I find that really bad. Surely a real annoyance last summer can't cause something like that? Or can it? What can be done? - R. G. in B. 

Short answer

There are many people who grind their teeth. People who are predisposed to this usually do so unconsciously and therefore unnoticed at night, but also during the day. The cause of grinding is mainly type-related. Psychological stress situations or poorly aligned teeth have an exacerbating effect.

Many people grind their teeth. Approximately 20 percent of the population grind their upper and lower teeth together to a greater or lesser extent over a 24-hour period without having any food between their teeth. People who are predisposed to this usually do this unconsciously and therefore unnoticed at night, but also during the day (60 percent of predisposed people only grind their teeth during the day). 

Crunching is type-related 

This involves much greater forces than chewing food. The cause of grinding is mainly type-related. Psychological stress situations or poorly aligned teeth have an exacerbating effect. 

According to your description, I have to assume that you also ground your teeth before last summer, but unnoticed, and that your teeth have not fitted perfectly for a long time, but that this has not bothered you. 

Possible trigger 

The key event was "a real annoyance over the summer". This psychologically stressful situation caused you to unconsciously bite (grind) your teeth more frequently and more firmly. This has caused pressure points and muscle cramps, i.e. you have exceeded your personal tolerance threshold. Since then, you have become aware that you grind your teeth and you now react very sensitively to this. 

Even though the stressful situation has now been resolved, you have realized that your teeth do not fit together properly, that this causes you to grind constantly and that you cannot chew meat properly. This is now bothering you. 

Help through correct tooth height 

The teeth on the prosthesis have probably been severely abraded by the grinding. They no longer match the lower teeth and the efficiency of grinding food has suffered greatly. You will then need new, sharp teeth on your denture, and the abraded tooth height can also be ideally restored with new teeth, which is crucial. 

The teeth can also be repositioned so that they fit together with the lower jaw again. This will most likely reduce the need to grind and lower your tolerance threshold. 

Author: Dr. med. dent. Jürg Eppenberger
Published in: Neue Luzerner Zeitung on January 14, 2008