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Physiotherapy for Head, Neck and Jaw Pain
Our principal physiotherapist Simon has been treating head, neck and jaw pain for 10 years. He has completed multiple head ache courses, as well as a Temporomandibular disorder (jaw) course with the Australian Physiotherapy Association. Alpha Physio prides itself on getting relief for its head neck and jaw patients. Some conditions we treat include:
Migraine:
Migraines are severe headaches, that often leave you bed ridden. They are frequently one sided, and are associated with other symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and sensitivity to light and sound. New research is showing dysfunction in the neck is often a prime driver of migraines.
Our physiotherapists can help you by:
- Assessing the neck to see if it is driving your migraines.
- Using targeted manual therapy to the upper neck to address dysfunction.
- Provide you with exercises and techniques to control your migraines.
- Provide dry needling to the neck and head.
- Rule out other causes of headaches.
Tension Type Headache:
Tension type headaches are often described as a constant vice like ache. They are typically on both sides of the head.
While they don’t usually leave you bed ridden they can still be very disruptive. Tension in the head and neck muscles is a major contributing factor in tension type headaches. Other factors can include stress, dehydration, and sustained postures like computer work.
Our physiotherapists can help treat Tension Type Headaches by:
- Assessing the muscles and joints in the neck
- Trigger point release and massage of the neck muscles
- Dry needling
- Manual therapy to the upper cervical spine
- Provide exercises and advice to reduce your headaches
Cervicogenic Headache:
Cervicogenic Headache is a headache resulting from injury or dysfunction to the neck. They are accompanied by pain in the neck, restricted movement, and often unsteadiness or balance issues. This is due to the roll of the neck in balancing the head on the body.
Cervicogenic headaches often occur after trauma to the neck or head and are usually one sided on the side of the injury.
Our physiotherapists can help you recover from cervicogenic headaches by:
- Assessing the neck for dysfunction.
- Mobilising the joints in the neck to improve movement.
- Trigger point release and massage to neck muscles
- Rehabilitative exercises to correct dysfunction in the neck
- Rule out other causes of headache.
Jaw Pain:
Jaw pain or temporomandibular disorders (TMD) are a group of disorders that cause pain and dysfunction in the jaw, ear, face, and head. These disorders can occur after injury, stress, or without an obvious cause. They often occur with clicking and locking of the jaw. Some common temporomandibular disorders include:
Myalgia:
This is pain and tightness in the chewing (or masticatory) muscles that operate the jaw. Myalgia is common in people who clench their teeth, chew gum, or experience high levels of stress.
Physiotherapy can help myalgia by massaging the masticatory muscles, dry needling, prescribing exercises to reduce tension in the jaw, and providing relaxation techniques.
Disc dysfunction:
The temporomandibular joint (jaw) contains a cartilage disc that helps to cushion the joint when you chew. Occasionally this cartilage disc moves and can cause clicking and locking in the jaw. This is problematic if the click becomes painful, or if the jaw locks due to obstruction of the joint.
Physiotherapy can help by mobilising the jaw joint to reduce pressure on the disc, reducing tension in the muscles surrounding the jaw, and prescribing exercises to reduce the clicking. It is important to note that it is unlikely that the clicking will go away entirely.
Arthralgia:
This is pain from the jaw joint itself. Pain is usually in front of the ear, in the ear, or in the temple. Eating is often painful. Pain can be from the joint surfaces, the internal joint structures, or the surrounding ligaments.
Physiotherapy can help arthralgia by giving advice regarding a soft diet, prescribing exercises that offload the joint, and massaging or dry needling the jaw muscles to reduce tension. Therapeutic US to the jaw may also aid healing.