Review article
Orofacial pain disorders (OFP), temporomandibular disorders (TMD) and comorbid conditions - Recent concepts and education in dental medicine
Melita Valentić-Peruzović
Abstract
Orofacial pain refers to pain associated with hard and soft tissues of the head, face and neck, which send impulses through the trigeminal nerve to the CNS to be interpreted as pain. Headaches, neurogenic, musculoskeletal and psychophysiologic pathology, cancer, autoimmune phenomena and tissue trauma represent the diagnostic range for the complaint of OFP. Various potential for pain from trigeminal receptive fields is the cause for a collaboration between the specialists belonging to different fields of medicine and those belonging to different fields of dental medicine. All of them participate in the evaluation and management of OFP. TMD is considered to be the main part of OFP and most practitioners are focused on evaluation, diagnostics and therapy of the disorder. In the sixties, W. Bell inaugurated the term temporomandibular disorder, which was generally accepted in praxis. This term suggested that apart from the problems regarding TMJ, there were also problems concerning masticatory muscles and all disorders associated with the function of masticatory system and their associated tissues. Different diagnostic systems and protocols are available for the research and classification of the TMD patients. The most common protocol used in research is RDC/TMD protocol (Research Diagnostic Criteria), which enables diagnoses according two axes: Axis I with somatic, and Axis II with psychophysical diagnoses, mostly for chronic TMP patients. In chronic TMP/OFP patients there is an increased probability of comorbid conditions. A need for modern diagnostics and management of TMP/OFP encouraged the development of a new course in graduate and postgraduate education of dental medicine students.
Keywords
orofacijal pain (OP); temporomandibular disorder (TMD); classification system; acute and chronic pain; education
Hrčak ID:
91365
URI
Publication date:
22.10.2012.
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