Primary headaches interfere with the efficacy of temporomandibular disorders management

OBJECTIVES:

This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the influence of Primary Headache(PH) on efficacy of a Temporomandibular Disorders (TMD) conservative therapy andits association with the presence of self-reported parafunctional habits.

SAMPLE AND METHODS:

Sample was composed of 400 medical records, divided into four groups: I) MuscularTMD (n=64); II) Muscular TMD+PH (n=48); III) Muscular TMD+Articular TMD (n=173);IV) Muscular TMD+Articular TMD+PH (n=115). All groups had undergone a TMD therapyfor three months with a stabilization appliance and counseling for habits andbehavioral changes, with no specific headache management. Current pain intensityand existence or not of self-reported bruxism were assessed. Repeated measuresANOVA and Chi-Square test followed by Odds were used for statistical analysis,with a significance level of 5%.

RESULTS:

results of this study showed that: (1) A conservative therapy with stabilizationappliance and counseling for habits and behavioral changes was effective in theTMD pain relief; (2) Groups with an additional diagnosis of PH had worsened thepain improvement significantly; and (3) no association between the presence ofself-reported bruxism and PH was found.

CONCLUSIONS:

this study could elucidate the important effect that headache may have on the TMDmanagement.