Migraine Help May Be Just a Dental Check Up Away: An Article About the NTI - Tss

Do you suffer from severe pain attacks associated with persistent headaches? Do you clench or grind your teeth while asleep? Is your head or scalp painful to the touch? Do you experience neck or shoulder pain? If so, help for your headache may be just a dental checkup away.

A whopping 23 million Americans suffer from migraines, according to the American Migraine Study. Up to one-half of that number are undiagnosed sufferers. Those who have been medically diagnosed expend exorbitant amounts of energy and financial resources to alleviate pain, as reported in Healthy Living News. And there is no telling the amount of money people who are undiagnosed spend on over-the-counter medications.

Because many people who suffer migraines do not seek medical treatment from dental practitioners, they remain unaware that nocturnal clenching could be the culprit. Unbeknown to many is the vigorous claim that migraine patients grind or clench their teeth while asleep - clenching with as much as 14 times the intensity of the typical sleeper. The problem with clenching is that it serves as a trigger for migraines, according to the Headache Prevention website.

The NTI-tss website explains the theory this way, migraines occur when the sensory nucleus, (the main center for sensation reception), demonstrates a hypersensitivity to stimuli. Part of the body's response to the stimuli (triggers) can be in the form of chemical secretions that irritate and inflame arteries surrounding the brain. Triggered pain sensors in the brain result in migraine pain.

But a trip to the dentist may remedy that. A dental device known as the Nociceptive Trigeminal Inhibition Tension Suppression System (NTI-tss) is fitted over the bottom central front teeth and prevents contact between the molars and canines. The device reduces the clenching during sleep, thereby reducing the frequency of pain attacks.

How the NTI works is best explained by comparing the movement of the temporal muscles when the jaw is engaged. One can feel the temporal muscles bulge and contract more intensely when biting down hard on a pencil with the back teeth as compared with the more relaxed temporal muscles in the biting action of the two front teeth.

The NTI-tss is currently the only FDA approved migraine preventative available to patients. No surgery is necessary. There are no side effects. In FDA reviewed trials, 82 percent of the participants who used NTI-tss, experienced a two-thirds reduction in migraine pain attacks within weeks of use. Not to mention, dental and medical insurance plans usually help pay for the service, as indicated on the Headache Prevention website.

The NTI-tss was developed several years ago by Doctor Jim Boyd, a long-time migraine sufferer as therapy for his own pain. Those who have used the dentist recommended NTI-tss, say the dental device is nothing short of a miracle.

But not everyone agrees. At least one researcher found the central idea that expanding and retracting blood arteries trigger pain sensors in the brain, does not provide support that the NTI as a possible cure, as reported in the Ottawa Sun.

Still, the NTI-tss is growing increasingly popular - last year over 45,000 custom-made NTIs were prescribed, according to Healthy Living News. Of the many migraine sufferers who claim to have achieved positive outcomes, some have even reported having received their life back after use of the NTI. And for those migraine sufferers, who have pursued several avenues in search of relief, a trip to the dentist to learn more about NTI-tss may be worth it.