Stress from COVID-19 leading to rise in teeth grinding, 2 New York dentists say

Stress related to the pandemic has led to a rise in teeth grinding and migraines for some New York residents, consequently increasing dental visits, WKBW reports.

"People are coming with more tension type headaches, migraines, decreased opening," said Michelle Augello, DDS, owner of North Buffalo, N.Y.-based Nickel City Dentistry. About 30-40 percent of her patients have reported similar issues, and she thinks stress about COVID-19 is to blame.

"It is a stressful climate in our world right now," Dr. Augello said. "They were clenching and grinding their teeth and they were breaking a lot of teeth."

Facial pain specialists are seeing the same thing, according to Jeffrey Goldberg, DDS, an orofacial pain specialist. He added that a lot of patients are coming in with posture-related issues from working at home, straining the neck, shoulders and, subsequently, the jaw.

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