TeethGrindingGuide.com

Teeth Grinding (also known as Bruxism) is a part of the active medical research world and there are researchers all over the world looking into all aspects of this disorder.
Looking at what the latest research is uncovering can provide you with some great insight into the disorder.  Here are some of the latest studies.

Shift Work may be your problem.

A February, 2008 study looked at the prevalence of sleep quality and insufficient sleep problems in patients with self-reported bruxism, particularly in employees who did nighttime shift work.

Bruxism was reported in 10.6 percent of all subjects, who also reported difficulties getting to sleep (16.8 percent) and disrupted sleep (46.7 percent).

Frequent bruxism was positively correlated with difficulty getting to sleep and disrupted sleep, as well as with dissatisfaction with one’s work schedule.  Researchers were unable to tell if the bruxism caused the sleep disorders or whether the sleep problems contributed to bruxism.

It was apparent that shift work was positively correlated with the existence of bruxism.

No link with TMJ disease?

A January, 2008, a study looked into the correlation between bruxism and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disease.  They found healthy controls and compared them to people who had known TMJ disease.

After having all subjects go through a sleep study, they found no particular correlation between those who had TMJ disease and normal controls.  This basically means that there are other causes of TMJ disease other than bruxism.

BruxChecker.

A 2006 study looked at the usefulness of a device known as a BruxChecker that helped determine if an individual with typical tooth damage of bruxism really had the condition.

It was found that the BruxChecker was able to detect specific grinding patterns and to visualize real or actual interferences during sleep.

The BruxChecker was able to identify the grinding pattern, able to make it easier for doctors and dentists to define the best treatment for the bruxer.