Association among headache, temporomandibular disorder, and awake bruxism: A cross-sectional study.

Abstract

To evaluate the association between headache, myofascial temporomandibular disorder (TMD), and awake bruxism (AB). Bruxism seems to act as a risk factor for TMD and its associated comorbidities, such as headaches. In total, 406medical records of individuals who sought care at a university dental clinic were screened. The Research Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders was used to assess and diagnose TMD, as well as to obtain self-reports of AB and headache. The sample consisted of 307medical records. About 72.5% (221/305) of the sample reported having headaches, and 67.4% (180/267) and 68.4% (210/307) were diagnosed with AB and TMD, respectively. Individuals who reported having AB (odds ratio [OR], 2.28; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.09-4.7) and who were diagnosed with myofascial TMD (OR, 2.53; 95% CI, 1.15-5.5) were more likely to have had headaches in the past 6months when compared with patients without myofascial TMD and bruxism. Also, individuals who self-reported headache were 2.27 times (95% CI, 1.09-4.7) more likely to have AB and 2.45 times (95% CI, 1.13-5.34) more likely to have myofascial pain than individuals without headaches. Individuals with myofascial TMD, headaches, or AB were more likely to have at least one of the other conditions.