Chronic pain disorder manifesting as dental pain: case report

Chronic pain disorder is a challenging presentation for the dental surgeon, and carries considerable impairment for the affected individual. Patients undergo extensive unnecessary investigations and treatments before the correct diagnosis is reached. It is frequently a diagnosis of exclusion. We report the case of a 46-year-old man who experienced persistent severe orofacial pain superimposed upon pain involving other anatomical regions for more than 20 years. He received treatment by eight specialties and at five national centres with increasingly poor outcome.The importance of early recognition of medically unexplained pain will be discussed. Clinical Relevance: Dentists should have a high index of suspicion of pain disorder in those with multiple complaints of chronic pain in order to avoid unnecessary investigation and treatment.