Quality of life in patients with temporomandibular disorders

AIM: Oral disorders have a psycho-social impact on the quality of life, that can be measured with instruments as the Oral Health Impact Profile questionnaire (OHIP). Using the OHIP, we evaluated if and how the orofacial pain can affect the quality of life in temporomandibular disorders (TMD) patients. METHODS: A transversal case-control study was carried out. Study subjects were patients referred to the Section of Prosthetic Dentistry and Temporomandibular Disorders of the University of Pavia (Italy). Subjects were recruited sequentially until the target of 124. The controls were 61 "pain free" subjects, who were recruited from the same clinic. In analyzing the data, the chi squared test was used for categorical data, and t test and one-way analysis of variance were used for numerical scores. RESULTS: The subjects in this study were predominantly females (83.9%). The mean age of subjects was 35.1 years (standard deviation= 14.0). The most frequently reported symptoms were pain in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) (87.1%). The data showed that orofacial pain had an important impact on daily life (p<0.05) and that its most common outcomes were psychological. CONCLUSIONS: Comparison with a "pain free" population clearly indicated that orofacial pain and associated symptoms negatively affect the quality of life of TMD patients.