Biomedicine: teeth grinding linked to sleep apnea.Rhythmic grinding of teeth grinding of teeth see bruxism. during sleep occurs at least once a week in as many as 8.2 percent of people, a new European study finds. The report also reveals that about half these people grind so much that they have jaw pain or tooth damage that requires dental work. Tooth grinding to that extent is called sleep bruxism Bruxism Definition Bruxism is the habit of clenching and grinding the teeth. It most often occurs at night during sleep, but it may also occur during the day. It is an unconscious behavior, perhaps performed to release anxiety, aggression, or anger. . While the cause of sleep bruxism is unknown, people who have it are significantly more likely than others to lead a stressful life, have anxiety or depression, smoke, ingest in·gest tr.v. in·gest·ed, in·gest·ing, in·gests 1. To take into the body by the mouth for digestion or absorption. See Synonyms at eat. 2. caffeine, or drink alcohol heavily, the study shows. An international team of researchers collected data over the telephone from 13,057 people age 15 or older in Italy, Germany, and the United Kingdom. The study, the largest general-population survey of sleep bruxism, appears in the January CHEST. People who grind their teeth, whether or not they have jaw or tooth problems, were more likely to snore snore (snor) 1. rough, noisy breathing during sleep, due to vibration of the uvula and soft palate. 2. to produce such sounds during sleep. snore v. loudly and have sleep apnea sleep apnea, episodes of interrupted breathing during sleep. Obstructive sleep apnea is a common disorder in which relaxation of muscles in the throat repeatedly close off the airway during sleep; the person wakes just enough to take a gasping breath. , a dangerous condition in which the sleeper stops breathing for periods of time, the survey found. People with sleep bruxism also were more likely to have morning headaches and suffer from daytime sleepiness than those who didn't grind their teeth, says study coauthor Maurice M. Ohayon, a physician at Stanford University School of Medicine Stanford University School of Medicine is affiliated with Stanford University and is located at Stanford University Medical Center in Stanford, California, adjacent to Palo Alto and Menlo Park. . The scientists found, too, that sleep bruxism tends to dissipate with age, affecting nearly 6 percent of people between ages 19 and 44 but only about 1 percent of those over 64. Dentists sometimes treat grinding by supplying patients with protective mouth guards. The devices address only symptoms, not the cause of teeth grinding teeth grinding Bruxism, see there , Ohayon says. While his study doesn't clarify cause, it sets out possible remedies, such as a change in lifestyle for people with habits linked to sleep bruxism and therapy for anxiety or depression when those conditions are present, he says. Physicians should consider teeth grinding as a signal of other more serious problems, such as sleep apnea, Ohayon says. Oral surgery can relieve some cases of sleep apnea, he notes. --N.S. |
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