What makes a beautiful face?
Symmetry, proportion and plump skin are the main prerequisites for a beautiful face. You might be blessed with good genes from good looking parents. However, your life style and the environmental factors can either enhance your beauty or destroy it. The bite plays an essential role in maintaining the balance and structure of the face. People who grind their teeth can end up with a collapsed looking face, short mid face, receded lower jaw, forward head posture and a lot more wrinkles compared to people who have nice tall teeth. Suzanne, the featured patient in this blog, was referred to Dr. Motlagh for a permanent solution to her chronic head & neck pain,TMJ pain, muscle spasm, tooth grinding and ongoing failing dentistry among many other debilitating symptoms. She was treated with our non surgical facelift procedure called YoungFace®.
Why do some people grind their teeth and other dont?
Contrary to common belief, tooth grinding is not due to stress but most often due to a functional and postural issue. Tooth grinding is the result of constant muscle spams in the face and neck. So why some people have facial spams and others don't? The answer is simple. The posturing muscles of the face that hold the lower jaw against the upper jaw can change in length depending on where the teeth mesh, "our bite"! A deep bite or an overbite usually throws off the muscle balance and gives the person's face an aged or over-closed look. Deep creases on the corners of the lips and above the chin are common signs of a deep bit. When muscles are in constant spasm, the person ends up grinding without the ability to control it, which in turn starts the domino effect of tooth wear, shortening of the face and appearance of the unwanted wrinkles. A bad bite, not only damages the teeth and breaks your expensive restorations, but also ages your face at a much faster rate.
Repositioning the jaw without surgery
Latest advancements in dentistry allows the trained practitioner to precisely measure the level of muscle spam in the major muscles of the face by performing Electromyography. As seen in the photo Dr. Maryam Motlagh treats the spasm in the muscles with the application of Ultra Low Frequency Electrical Neural Stimulation. Ulf -TENS is a comfortable procedure that relaxes all the facial muscles within one hour. When the muscles of the face relax, the lower jaw which is suspended by the muscles relaxes and lands to its ideal rest position also known as the "Physiologic Rest Position" among dentists. Once the headaches and facial tension are eliminated, the bite is corrected to permanently support this new relaxed position of the face.