Prevalence of temporomandibular disorder and possible associated factors in a sample of older adults: population-based cross-sectional study

Abstract

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Temporomandibular disorders (TMD) are a group of conditions characterized by changes in the movements and function of the orofacial region and one of main reported symptoms is pain. As it has been increasingly described among different age groups, this study aimed to evaluate the presence of symptoms of TMD and their possible associated factors in older people from a city in southern Brazil. METHODS: A cross-sectional household-based study using a per cluster sampling strategy was performed including 282 older adults aged ≥60 years in the city of Veranopolis/RS. A clinical oral examination and a structured questionnaire were applied. TMD symptoms were evaluated with Fonseca Anamnestic Index (FAI) questionnaire and divided into those “without TMD” and “with TMD” (the later including those reporting mild, moderate and severe TMD symptoms). Associations were performed by the chi-square or Mann-Whitney tests based on frequency distribution. Bi and multivariate analyses were performed using Poisson regression with robust variation to verify associations. RESULTS: Prevalence among older adults that reported symptoms of TMD was 30.5% (n=86). In the final multivariate model, female older adults presented higher prevalence ratio (PR) for symptoms of TMD, presenting 62.8% (p=0.040) higher PR to at least mild symptoms of TMD when compared to older adult men. Number of teeth, need for dental prosthesis or other demographic variables were not associated with symptoms of TMD. CONCLUSION: The results demonstrated a prevalence of TMD symptoms in the seniors of approximately 30%, which was most associated with females. Despite its relevance in public health strategies focused on older adults, these findings should be interpreted with caution due to their observational and cross-sectional nature.