Swedish dental journal. Supplement
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Comparative Study
Chronic orofacial pain. Understanding patients from two perspectives: the clinical view and the patient's experience.
The aim of this thesis was to study chronic orofacial pain patients from two perspectives--the clinical view and the experience of the patient--in order to improve the understanding of the patients and their condition. All patients had been referred to the Faculty of Odontology, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden owing to chronic orofacial pain. The clinical perspective was investigated in a retrospective study of 109 consecutive chronic orofacial pain patients (85 females, 24 males) who had been examined by a pain group. ⋯ To study patients with chronic orofacial pain from a clinical viewpoint and from a patient perspective led to a deeper understanding of chronic orofacial pain as a complex condition that has an impact on every aspect of the patient's life. The patients often seek dental care because of the pain. It seems to be important in dentistry to develop constructive strategies for caring for these patients--especially when the dental disease condition has already been adequately diagnosed and treated, but the patients still experience pain.