Download revised definitions 1.3

Assignment 1:3 Definitions
For assignment 1:3, I will be providing three types of definitions with the goal of explaining a
term commonly used in dentistry. The intended audience is for the general population. The term
I will be defining is bruxism, a term used to describe a condition of clenching and grinding one’s
teeth. A clear and concise definition should be free of dental jargon for enhanced communication
between oral health care professionals and their patient population. The three types of definitions
I will be providing examples for are parenthetical, sentence and expanded.
Parenthetical:
Bruxism (clenching and/or grinding) one’s teeth together.
Sentence definition:
Bruxism: Bruxism is a medical condition that causes excessive wear on biting surfaces of teeth,
headaches, muscles spasms and facial pain due to clenching and/or grinding the upper and lower
teeth together.
Expanded definition:
The term bruxism is derived from the Greek word brychen, it means to gnash the teeth. The
suffix ‘ism’ is derived from the English language and added to form an action noun from a verb
(Definition of bruxism, 2017).
Who is affected by bruxism?
Bruxism can affect both children and adults
When does it occur?
Bruxism can occur either during the day but more commonly during sleep. It is commonly an
involuntary behaviour of grinding and/or clenching the teeth, and can be induced by stress,
anxiety or anger.
Should I be concerned?
Bruxism can cause significant damage to your teeth because while sleeping and without the
buffering capacity of food, the jaws come together with three to ten times greater force than
during regular chewing (Vadivelu, Vadivelu, & Kaye,2014). Sometimes people are unaware of
their clenching or grinding habit but may be diagnosed by an oral health care professional.
Common signs and symptoms of bruxism can include the following;
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Contractions of the jaw muscles
A grinding sound at night, which may be disruptive to those around you
Tight or painful muscles of the jaw
Popping or clicking sounds of the temporomandibular joint (jaw joint)
Damaged teeth, broken dental fillings and injured gums
Headaches
Swelling (Plexis, 2017)
In figure 1 the left side of the diagram represents a healthy tooth of the lower jaw; the right side
of the diagram represents a flattened tooth due to loss of tooth structure as a result of bruxism.
Figure 1: Flattened tooth
Bruxism illustration (Rady Children’s Hospital- San Diego, 2013)
In figure 2, the left side of the diagram represents the range of motion of grinding, and moving
the jaw from left to right, or forward and back, with the teeth closed. The right side of the
diagram represents clenching or continuously biting down on the teeth with excessive force.
Figure 2: Clenching and grinding
Teeth Grinding/ Teeth Clenching/ Bruxism Treatment (Dentistry for the entire family, 2014)
How can it be treated?
Treatment options for the condition can include; stress and anxiety management, behaviour
modification techniques, medications, and removable custom-made splints (Darby & Walsh,
2010).
References
Darby, M., & Walsh, M. (2010). Procedures manual to accompany Dental hygiene (1st ed.).
St.Louis, Mo.: Saunders/Elsevier.
Definition of bruxism. (2017). Merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 31 May 2017, from
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bruxism
Pleis, D. (2017). Teeth Clenching, Teeth Grinding, & Dental Health/ Colgate ®. Colgate.com.
Retrieved 31 May 2017, from http://www.colgate.com/en/us/oc/oralhealth/conditions/bruxism/article/teeth-clenching-and-grinding-can-affect-your-dental-health1114
Vadivelu, N., Vadivelu, A., & Kaye, A. (2014). Orofacial pain (1st ed.). Cham: Springer.