I don't have any cartilage between my jaw joints

[erninmcm]

Hello!

I'm a 24 year old from Michigan who just found out there's a strong possibility the only way to stop my migraines is to have a IVRO Orthognathic surgery.

I've looked all over the internet but I haven't found anyone else who doesn't have cartilage between their jaw joints (one side has a small bit left but not enough to stop the jaw from putting pressure on my brain). The doctors i've been to so far have no idea what happened. They're all guessing I was born with the cartilage but it slowly wore away since one side has a small bit left.

Three years ago we started a long process involving a 1,000 dollar mouth guard that i've had to wear at all times. So far it's done more harm than good, before I started wearing this I hadn't ever had a cavity and I was someone who not only smiled all the time but had a great smile. Then I stared wearing my mouth guard and within 6 months I had 7 cavities forming and my muscles had all moved around so not only can I not smile without looking like I have a gun pulled on me but all of my teeth are never touching (when I have the mouth guard in my back teeth touch the plastic but my front teeth have about a quarter of an inch gap between my top and bottom teeth, when I take the mouth guard off to brush my teeth or try to smile then the front teeth will barely touch and the back teeth have a quarter of an inch gap between the top and bottom teeth).

For a while my migraines went away but they've come back and I can't stay in this mouth guard for another year or two along with 5 years of braces, no can I afford the braces and $100 charge for every visit. Not being able to smile or talk without looking like you're trying to hide your bottom teeth for thee years is really depressing.

My doctor isn't too happy but i've had a few other doctors who think this is the best option for me.

I'll give you a run down on all of my mouth problems :

-I lack the necessary amount of cartilage to support my jaw and stop is from putting pressure on my brain

-my right jaw grew a quarter of an inch longer than the left side, it's really only noticeable when I tell people about it because i've unconsciously made up for it by tilting my head and shoulders since I was nine.

-my jaw alignment is slanted by 5mm (my doctor made this seem really sever but after reading blogs where people have 8mm overbites I no longer feel special.)

- I also have really weak teeth, something my dad passed down to me. So after I had my braces taken off when I was a kid I had about seven chunks off teeth come off with the cement and my back molar is now more dental cement than it is tooth.


Thanks for reading all of this. It feels pretty good to get it all out, especially after I felt like a baby for crying on the drive home today after my doctors appointment.

I'm really just looking for anything related to cartilage problems or people who've done IVRO and how they've turned out.

Thanks again!!

[adawnclark]

I do not have cartilage between my joints, either. I've had orthognathic surgery almost 7 years ago. I still have regular headaches and now they're talking about a total joint replacement. I was in a bite splint for a year before I started my surgeries, now I just wear a retainer on my top teeth at night. I've see many doctors over the years, to include a pain management doctor and the thing that has helped me the most is my diet. I try to stay on soft solids and keep my talking and laughing to a minimum. I NEVER chew gum or bite into any food (i.e. sandwiches and fruits). Depending on where the pain is, I have taken muscle relaxers for relief and for those times when I wake up grinding my teeth, I have anti-anxiety medicine. Pain meds usually make me sick, so I try to stick with Ibuprofren for pain relief. My surgeon explained that with orthognathic surgery the joints will align better and therefore, not wear my bones down further. But, he did also tell me that it was very likely for more procedures down the road and he has checked on me once a year for the past 5 years.
It has been awhile since your post and I hope you've found the answers you were looking for. Good luck!