Lockjaw!

[OperaMBA]

I was driving in to work this morning, eating a breakfast bar and my jaw stopped chewing!  It wouldn't move side to side, nor would it open more than 3/4 of an inch for about 5 minutes.   I tried to force it open and it wouldn't budge much.

I know that tetanus causes a lot of neurological symptoms, so I have been looking at that this morning.

Has anyone had this happen to them?

Richard
The artist formerly known as OperaMBA

[charkit]

It happened again.  4:30 til 8:30 this morning.  He is totally disabled and in a motorized wheelchair.  I don't know what to do for him.  Making an appointment with an oral surgeon this week.  He would have seen him this morning, but then it popped back.  Maybe he can tell me what to do.  Any ideas anyone can share when this happens again?  He gets so scared when it happens.

[charkit]

My husband has MS and he woke up this morning with his jaw locked in an open position.  I gave him a warm cloth and got on the internet and found this group.  What should I do?  It is Sunday and I am sure I cannot get a doctor, and even if I could, they will tell me to take him to the emergency room.  Anything you can tell me to help him?

[doni54]

Yea...........likely story...............

[OperaMBA]

It was her, she made me do it!

[doni54]

You two are just too funny!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[OperaMBA]

You should have offered him your gluteus maximus!!!  :-)

Richard
OperaMBA

[Quixotic1]

Okay, a funny story on me.  I generally have a fairly good vocabulary. In medical school when we were learning physical exam skill, we brought our shiny new stethoscopes to the class (small groups).  The mentor talked a little and during the break I asked,"Well, when do we start oscillating?"

An arrogant, sexist classmate (surgeon to be) looked at me leeringly and said, "Anytime you want.  Anytime you want."

I meant oscultating.  Oscillating means kissing.

Oh, well...

Quix

[OperaMBA]

My ring finger on my left hand does this when I am woodworking - stiff as a board.

Crazy stuff we all have.

[OperaMBA]

Thanks to all of you guys for brightening me up!   I have had a poo-poo-y day for a variety of reasons and this really helps.

Thanks for the good info from several of you that I'm not losing my mind!   I have noticed the jaw clinching at night Sunny, but that only started during this episode.   So, is in neurological, or is it Memorex?  Hard to tell.  :-)   Older folks like me, explain it to the younger ones....  :-)

Also, I had thought that things were going bad previously, but NOW DubV (doublevision1) wants to send me to the vet!    They'll have the muzzle on me before the weekend!

Okay, all seriousness aside, my jaw feels sort of funky and my eyes are definitely not right, but they are not as bad as Saturday.   I am going for a vision field test tomorrow, so, hopefully that will yield some tangible results.

I'll keep everyone posted.

Thanks for all of the support, again!

Richard
OperaMBA

[doublevision1]

I've never experienced it but something like that actually happened to one of my beloved standard poodles.  It did not resolve on its own so I took him to the vet, who diagnosed him (after I did all the internet research....guess its the same deal for canine patients as it is for us humans) with masticatory muscle myositis.  He was put on oral prednisone and it eventually resolved.  he's been fine for years now, no more occurrences of this problem.  His head feels very bony in parts, where the muscle tissue atrophied.

[biowham]

Quix, I wish you could tell some of those stories to the antivax people in the autism world. How quickly they forget.

MBA, this has never happened to me. But my fingers lock up on me all the time when I'm using them for something tense, like flossing my teeth. It is REALLY annoying. I just have to sit there and wait for them to "unlock."

Bio

[jensequitur]

I get a sore jaw quite often, and sometimes my jaw will do a weird little twist and I'll end up biting the underside of my tongue!  How is that possible?  I dunno, but it's quite painful.

I'm with Quix - I think you experienced a spasm of the jaw muscles.  Maybe you shouldn't be driving and masticating?  Sounds hazardous... ;-)

[Sunnytoday]

Hey there, I too have this problem, and mine DOES come from clenching my teeth at night.... and it can hit you out the blue, if you haven't been noticing the little clicking noises that come and go when you chew, that hard bar could have just make it lock when the little disc in your joint slipped forward and "locked' it OUT of place. This is of course, if it's not neurological.

I had a TMJ specialist that did nice little x-rays that could show my disc was out of place, so I was on relaxants and pain meds for a while until it relaxed and healed out- so we thought. I also use a very small mouth pice that helps me not to clench or grind quite is as much, theoretically. I still have to watch out, if I open my mouth to yawn or take a big bite, my jaw wrenches in all directions and makes loud noise- and I occasionally get that funky 'locked jaw'- you just learn how to GENTLY reach up and wiggle and glide it out of place.... all that smashing around is what can actually tear or damage the disc in the first place (i found out the hard way the FIRST time I smashed around on it when it locked).

Good luck and I hope it never happens again for you, and that you don't have any lasting effects such as a true locked jaw jaw (mine locked almost shut for a few months) or painful jaw in the next few days...

Have a wonderful day!
~Sunnytoday~

[slightlybroken]

I've have this problem. I don't have any clicking, or popping prior, my jaws just lock up and my jaw is perfectly straight.

The first time I experienced this problems was in 1998. I also experienced other neurological problems around the same time that were not completely explained. The lockjaw occurred a few times off and on. It didn't bother me so much because it would lock and within 5-10 minutes unlock. But I did have one time that it locked for a week. I went to my GP and they referred me to a dental surgeon. They said that it didn't appear that I grinded my teeth or there was any bone structure problem. They gave me some valium and sent me on my way.

The problem went away for a long time after that but resurfaced at the beginning of this year. I started to have problems again with the lockjaw out of nowhere. Then, I started to have problems with other health issues and had to have surgery. After being tubed for one of my surgeries I woke up fine but within hours my jaw slowly started to lock up. It stayed locked for 3 months off and on.

I do believe my problem is from muscle spasms because Baclofen does seem to help. I did have to increase the dose. When I did do some research on the internet for trismus ( not being able to open your mouth), there is a link to neurological conditions that can cause this. MS and Lupus is two.

This is not fun to have, especially when you want to bite a sandwich and you have to smash it down to size.

[Wobbly]

HAHAHAHA...

you guys have made me laugh this morning...and that is a pretty big challange for anyone...heheheheh

have a good one guys

wobbly
LL

[doni54]

Well, I needed to laugh this morning and when I saw your post I thought I would give it a try.  

Never fails.....you have one great sense of humor even when your body is doing things it shouldn't...I'm not even mentioning the masticate referral!!!!

Take care and have a smile filled day.

Hugs
doni

[Lulu54]

Do you really masticate and drive at the same time?  take that, evil medhelp censor software!!!

The tetanus conversation was particularly interesting because my 33 y/o son was mocking me for getting a tetanus booster this year, claiming no one gets tetanus anymore.  To which I replied that last I checked rusty nails had not been eradicated from this earth.

I too have had that locked up jaw thing and it is sore for a while but then goes away.  I always take it as a sign that I've been talking too much....

Be better,
Lulu

[OperaMBA]

Why thank you very much!

I couldn't get through life being serious all of the time...

When David, my youngest boy was four, I would get on to him and his brother about not cleaning up their toys in the family rooms: "boys, you did a great job of cleaning up the family room!  Keep it up!"....

David's response would be "dad, that was sarcasm, wasn't it?".

I figure that is a valuable skill to have by age four...

I mess with them ALL THE TIME!   They really have to consider when I am serious and when I am not.   So, at least I've got them putting their brains to good use...

Richard
OperaMBA

[Heather3418]

I'll use this space here to tell you that you have brought alot to the MS Forum since you joined.  You can be serious, but yet keep your great sense of humor.  It's been a real joy to have you aboard.  We will give you the names of all the other guys that joined but we have heard little from.  You tell them we miss them.  Maybe they'll listen to another guy.

Have a great day fella.  Special hello's to your wife and your boys.

Heather

[OperaMBA]

It was definitely created by someone with a sick sense of humor!

Richard

[Heather3418]

I hope you masticated your food well.  I have always felt that masticating was really a stupid name for "chewing."  Don't you?

[OperaMBA]

Thank Quix,

It was the big chewing muscles...   Just prior to the situation I was masticating...   But just keep that between you and me!  :-)

I have an appointment with the PCP, who is right around the corner from my office, at 1:45.   I will run it all by him.

I have never had any TMJ symptoms in my life either, so I would have to agree with your assessment....

I'll keep you posted.

Crazy times for a crazy person!

Richard
OperaMBA

[Quixotic1]

If it is neurological - and my bet is that it was - it would be from tight spasm of the big masseter muscles.  Generally when the joint locks up the person has some history of the joint clciking and popping and of some mechanical "thunk" preceding the locking up.

I agree that TMJ dysfunction is really common, but coming out of nowhere, lasting 5 minutes and then resuming sounds more like a sudden muscle spasm.  

It was not tetanus.  Though the locked jaw is maybe the most dramatic sign of tetanus, the muscles of the entire body lock up also, because it is due to a toxin coursing throught the blood stream and affecting the whole body.  Tetanus is extraordinarily rare now with the use of tetanus shots.  It is seen most frequently in immigrants and newborns of mothers who have refused immunizations of themselves.  The baby is born without antibodies and cannot fight off the infection in their belly button stumps.  It is frequently fatal in the newborns.

Quix (former pediatrician and advocate of immunizations - I have watched children die of most of the diseases we now use shots to prevent)

[OperaMBA]

Thanks, that is good information.

I was just wondering because of the 30 or so other neurological symptoms I have had since August 18 or so....

It probably was TMJ from all that is going on.   I have been clinching my teeth at night.

Richard
OperaMBA