J Orofac Pain
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To investigate chronic orofacial pain experience, psychosocial impact, and help-seeking response in adult Chinese people in Hong Kong. ⋯ The prevalence of current/episodic orofacial pain was relatively high, whereas chronic orofacial pain was much less common. Although the intensity of chronic orofacial pain was significant, associated psychosocial disability was low, as was the level of perceived need for treatment. These findings may be related to more effective pain-coping strategies and greater acceptance of pain in this ethnic group compared to other ethnic groups.
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To compare the tactile detection threshold, the filament-prick pain detection threshold, the pressure pain threshold, and the pressure pain tolerance detection threshold at multiple measuring points in the orofacial region and at the thenar muscle of symptom-free subjects and patients with myofascial pain of the masticatory muscles. ⋯ The findings of the present study show topographic variations in the pain responses to different stimulus modalities. Different pain responses were also found between patients with myofascial pain and control subjects and were interpreted to support theories of centrally mediated pain for temporomandibular disorders.
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Comparative Study
A method for clinically defining "improvers" in chronic pain studies.
To test a measurement model based on clinicians' assessments of patient data that allows simple and confident clinical validation of any statistical or numerical technique designed to separate patients improving with treatment from those who are not, particularly for pain that shows large daily variation. ⋯ Visual assessment of VAS demonstrates distinct pain/time patterns that can validate numeric definition of complex pain recovery. No single numeric method can be guaranteed to give a clinically valid outcome.
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To determine whether symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are related to the pain of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) in a community-based sample of female twin pairs, and if so, to ascertain whether the association is due to the presence of chronic widespread pain (CWP) and familial/genetic factors. ⋯ PTSD symptoms are strongly linked to TMD pain. This association could be partially explained by genetic vulnerability to both conditions but is not related to the presence of CWP. Future research is needed to understand the temporal association of PTSD and TMD pain and the genetic and physiological underpinnings of this relationship.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of clinical findings and psychosocial factors in patients with atypical odontalgia and temporomandibular disorders.
To systematically compare clinical findings and psychosocial factors between patients suffering from atypical odontalgia (AO) and an age- and gender-matched group of patients with temporomandibular disorders (TMD). ⋯ AO and TMD share some characteristics but differ significantly in report of dental trauma, jaw function, pain duration, and pain site.