Self-reported bruxism and stress and anxiety in adults: A study from Iran

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The habit of grinding teeth together is called grinding and the scientific term is “bruxism”. Bruxism usually occurs in deep sleep or when the person is under stress. This motivates the authors to investigate the relationship between stress and anxiety with the rate of free informed bruxism in the present work.METHODS: This research was a cross-sectional study and the population under analysis was adults over 18 years of age who referred to dental clinics of Kerman, Iran, and also people who accompanied them (simple census). The ethical approval code was IR.KMU.REC.1399.321. The investigations included questioning the patients about the history of bruxism and clenching. The information was analyzed by chi-square test, using SPSS software with 0.05 confidence level.RESULTS: The prevalence of self-reported bruxism was 23.2% and 15.1% among women and men, respectively. The percentage of clenching alone was 27.3%, and it was 23.5% and 25.6% in women and men, respectively. The prevalence of bruxism and clenching together was 9.8 %. In patients suffering from bruxism, the prevalence of temporomandibular signs was 24.6%, the feeling of fatigue, stiffness, or pain after awakening was 23.5%, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) sound was 6.9%, and limitation in mouth opening was 8.8%. In patients suffering from clenching, TMJ sound was 5.8%, oral pain was 8.8%, and limitation in mouth opening was 10.5%. Between 365 respondents, people who were aware of their bruxism significantly reported more anxiety.CONCLUSION: Based on the present findings, self-reported bruxism, anxiety, and stress may be associated with each other.