J Orofac Pain
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This topical review presents an overview of orofacial manifestations associated with the more common connective tissue diseases affecting multiple organs. The orofacial manifestations associated with these autoimmune disorders include oral mucosa alterations, salivary gland pathosis, sensory neuropathies, headaches, and temporomandibular disorders. ⋯ An understanding of the orofacial manifestations associated with these systemic diseases will enable the pain practitioner to establish an appropriate diagnosis within the context of the underlying systemic disease. This will allow the practitioner the opportunity to contribute and collaborate as a member of a multidisciplinary health-care team in the management of these systemic autoimmune diseases.
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To evaluate temporomandibular disorder (TMD) patients for differences between masticatory muscle (MM) and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain patients in the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and evaluate the level of psychological dysfunction and its relationship to PTSD symptoms in these patients. ⋯ A somewhat elevated prevalence rate for PTSD symptomatology was found in the MM group compared to the TMJ group. Significant levels of psychological dysfunction appeared to be linked to TMD patients with PTSD symptoms.
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To evaluate the sensitivity and reproducibility of a multimodal psychophysical technique for the assessment of both spatial and temporal changes in somatosensory function after an infraorbital nerve block. ⋯ The present findings indicate that the psychophysical method is sufficiently reproducible, with no major differences between sessions in healthy subjects. All stimulus modalities demonstrated adequate sensitivity. Furthermore, measurement of points in 5 x 5 matrices allowed a spatial description of somatosensory sensitivity. This method may be valuable for studies on changes in somatosensory sensitivity following trauma or orthognathic surgery on the maxilla.
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To investigate whether trigeminal manifestations of pain, sensitization, and vasomotor responses following the intradermal injection of capsaicin to the foreheads differ from manifestations following injection of capsaicin in the forearms of healthy humans. Dose dependency and sex-related differences of the evoked responses were also studied. ⋯ Capsaicin-evoked sensory and vasomotor manifestations were different in the forehead and forearm. The differences are most likely due to the differences in innervation density and neurovascular activity. The capsaicin-induced effects were demonstrated to be dose-dependent and sex-related phenomena.
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To determine intra- and interrater agreement of the pressure pain threshold (PPT) values for children reporting orofacial pain related to temporomadibular disorders and symptom-free subjects when the mean of 3 consecutive measurements or the mean of the last 2 consecutive measurements was considered. ⋯ The lower levels of reproducibility for the measurements obtained on different days in the children who reported pain may have been related to instability of their clinical signs and symptoms, and a PPT assessment based on the mean of 3 consecutive measurements or the procedure of discarding the first measure should be considered for such evaluations, especially when they are conducted by different raters. Algometry was shown to be a reliable tool for the evaluation of pain threshold in the masticatory structures of children.