HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

J Am Dent Assoc, Vol 137, No 8, 1089-1098. © 2006 American Dental Association

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Wassell, R. W. Articles by Kelly, P. J. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Wassell, R. W. Articles by Kelly, P. J. Related Collections Endodontics

JADA Continuing Education

One-year follow-up

Background. The authors evaluated temporomandibular disorder (TMD) outcomes in general dental practice one year after treatment with stabilizing splints (SS) or nonoccluding control splints (CS).

Methods. Seventy-two randomly allocated subjects completed initial treatment. The outcomes measures were a pain visual analog scale (VAS), muscle tenderness, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) tenderness, interincisal opening, TMJ clicks and headaches. After initial treatment, 81 percent of the subjects were found to have been treated satisfactorily. The dentists referred the remaining subjects to a dental hospital. At one year, the authors recalled 52 of the original subjects for evaluation.

Results. Improvements after initial treatment were maintained at one year for all outcomes, except for TMJ clicking, which returned to pretreatment levels. Eighty-one percent of the subjects rated their treatment as either good or excellent in reducing jaw pain. The authors found that subjects were aware of more of their TMJ clicks than dentists observed at the one-year clinical examination, but most subjects thought their clicking or the associated pain had been reduced. Fifty-five percent subjects had used their splints in the previous six months, but only 31 percent of these had done so daily. There were no significant differences between splint groups.

Conclusion. At one year, a good response to TMD treatment in general practice had been maintained, but many subjects still had clicking TMJs.

Clinical Implications. Trained dentists can manage TMD satisfactorily, with only a small proportion of patients needing specialist attention.

Key Words: Temporomandibular disorders; clinical trial; occlusal treatment; stabilizing splint; general dental practice

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S. J. Scrivani, D. A. Keith, and L. B. Kaban Temporomandibular Disorders N. Engl. J. Med., December 18, 2008; 359(25): 2693 - 2705. [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. M. Laskin Temporomandibular disorders: A term past its time? J Am Dent Assoc, February 1, 2008; 139(2): 124 - 128. [Full Text] [PDF]