Having a balanced bite is essential for a healthy mouth. It impacts how you chew, speak and it allows your teeth to function properly. Neuromuscular dentistry relaxes the muscles around the jaw to ease up tension on the joints. This is believed to improve jaw alignment and relieve temporomandibular disorders (TMD) and malocclusion, also known as a crossbite.
However, the American Dental Association does not recognize this branch of dentistry, making the practice controversial. It's important to note that correcting jaw position to treat or prevent TMD has not been proven with randomized controlled clinical trials—the gold standard in evidence-based dentistry.
Read on to learn more about this specialty and when (or if) this treatment is necessary.