Journal of oral rehabilitation
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The study investigated the experience of widespread pain (WP) symptoms and psychological distress in southern Chinese with orofacial pain (OFP). A community-based, cross-sectional case-control study involving people aged 35-70 registered with the Hospital Authority/University of Hong Kong Family Medicine Clinic served as the sampling frame. People with recent OFP symptoms and a group without OFP took part. ⋯ Co-morbid WP occurred relatively often in southern Chinese with OFP. Psychological distress was common in OFP sufferers, particularly those with WP. A multidisciplinary approach to treatment including cognitive/behavioural therapy should be considered in Chinese people with OFP as part of a WP pattern.
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The aim of the present study was to determine in humans whether local anaesthesia (LA) or nociceptive stimulation of the periodontal ligaments affects the excitability of the face primary motor cortex (MI) related to the tongue and jaw muscles, as measured by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Twelve healthy volunteers (11 men, 1 woman, 25.3 +/- 4.2 years) participated in two 3-h sessions separated by 7 days. The LA carbocain or the nociceptive irritant capsaicin was randomly injected into the periodontal ligament of the lower right central incisor. ⋯ All subjects reported a decreased mechanical sensitivity (anova: P = 0.004) in the LA session and a burning pain sensation (VAS peak pain: 6.4 +/- 1.0) in the capsaicin session. No significant changes in cortical excitability of the MI, as reflected by TMS-MEP stimulus-response curves or corticomotor maps for the tongue, masseter or FDI were found between baseline and post-injection for the LA (anovas: P > 0.22) or capsaicin (anovas: P > 0.16) sessions. These findings suggest that a transient loss or perturbation in periodontal afferent input to the brain from a single incisor is insufficient to cause changes in corticomotor excitability of the face MI, as measured by TMS in humans.