Abstract
BackgroundTo investigate the associations of aural symptoms, headache and depression with the presence of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) symptoms in a young adult population in Japan.MethodsA personal interview survey was conducted on first-year university students (n = 1,930) regarding symptoms of TMD, aural problems, headache, shoulder pain and depression. Logistic regression was applied to assess the associations of these problems with the presence of TMD symptoms after controlling for age and gender.ResultsAmong the 1,930 students, 543 students exhibited TMD symptoms and were classified into 7 groups: clicking only (Group I, n = 319), pain in the TMJ only (Group II, n = 21), difficulty in mouth opening only (Group III, n = 18), clicking and pain (Group IV, n = 29), clicking and difficulty in mouth opening (Group V, n = 48), difficulty in mouth opening and pain (Group VI, n = 11), and combination of three symptoms (Group VII, n = 97). The control group (n = 1,387) were subjects without any TMD symptoms. After adjusting for age and gender, a strong association was observed between TMD symptoms (Group II and IV) and tinnitus (OR = 12.1 and 13.2, respectively). TMD symptoms (Group I, II and III) were also associated with vertigo and headache. Otalgia and depression were significantly associated with the presence of clicking only.ConclusionsTMD symptoms were significantly correlated to aural symptoms and headache. A functional evaluation of the stomatognathic system should be considered in subjects with unexplained aural symptoms and headache.
Highlights
To investigate the associations of aural symptoms, headache and depression with the presence of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) symptoms in a young adult population in Japan
The percentage of subjects experiencing vertigo was significantly greater in the TMD-positive groups I, II, III, IV and V than in the TMD-negative group
Significant associations were observed between the percentages of subjects experiencing headache and TMDpositive groups I, II, III, IV and VII
Summary
To investigate the associations of aural symptoms, headache and depression with the presence of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) symptoms in a young adult population in Japan. Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) are characterized by various signs and symptoms including pain and dysfunction in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and/or the masticatory musculature. Apart from these sites of pain and dysfunction other areas of the face and neck can be involved, e.g. the temporal, occipital, and frontal areas of the head, and auricular area [1,2]. The most commonly reported aural symptoms in TMD patients are otalgia, tinnitus, vertigo and subjective hearing loss [6,7,8]. The prevalence of vertigo in TMD patients is reported to range from 40% to 70% [2]. It is well documented that TMD patients with tinnitus and vertigo have higher pain and dysfunction scores than do TMD patients without otologic symptoms [9,10]
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