J Orofac Pain
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To determine the degree to which the generic pain intensity rating (i.e., overall and without reference to a particular body site) of facial pain patients being seen in a specialty setting for facial pain is influenced by painful comorbidity in body parts other than the face. ⋯ The results of this study suggest that the maximum visual analog scale pain intensity score, observed in any body location, is a better reflection of the generic pain intensity rating than the corresponding score of the face. To avoid over-rating or underrating of facial pain intensity, patients should be instructed to provide site-specific pain intensity scores if painful comorbidity is present.
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Patients with different facial pain/headache pathologies usually complain of numerous accompanying symptoms relative to systemic dysfunctions or to the patient's personality characteristics. The purpose of this work was: (1) to determine the prevalence of accompanying symptoms in groups of patients with temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction and other types of facial pain or headache disorders, (2) to assess the patients' personality characteristics and anxiety levels, and (3) to see whether significant differences were found between the groups. ⋯ It is concluded that some types of headache and facial pain seem to correlate with the presence of a number of accompanying symptoms and with some changes in personality. These changes are particularly relevant in patients with chronic daily headache and facial pain disorder. In contrast, patients with TMJ intracapsular disorders tended to show a low prevalence of accompanying symptoms and a normal personality profile.
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The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of pain that is related to temporomandibular disorders (TMD), gender differences, and perceived treatment need in children and adolescents at a public dental clinic in Linköping, Sweden. ⋯ Overall, TMD-related pain was more common in girls than in boys. A majority of children and adolescents who experienced pain once a week or more perceived a need for treatment. Seven percent of the examined subjects were diagnosed with TMD pain.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Pressure pain threshold with and without iontophoretic anesthesia of the masseter muscle in asymptomatic males.
The pressure pain threshold (PPT) in the superficial masseter muscle was measured with and without cutaneous anesthesia to determine whether there would be a difference in PPT scores. ⋯ Pressure pain sensation in the human masseter is not derived predominantly from the cutaneous tissues, but from the muscle itself.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Chronic neurogenic facial pain: lack of response to intravenous phentolamine.
Chronic neurogenic facial pain is commonly resistant to treatment and is often the source of significant patient morbidity. Adrenergic mechanisms are postulated to play a role in producing this type of pain, and adrenergic blocking agents are frequently used in clinical practice for pain control therapy. The analgesic effectiveness of an adrenergic blocking agent, intravenous phentolamine, was compared to saline and intravenous lidocaine in the present study using a single-blind protocol in patients with chronic neurogenic facial pain. ⋯ The results do not support an adrenergic mechanism for chronic neurogenic facial pain. The response to lidocaine, a nonadrenergic, membrane-stabilizing agent, suggests that it may have clinical effectiveness in certain neurogenic facial pain patients.