ISSN:
1365-2842
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Medicine
Notes:
Sleep-related bruxism (SB) is a frequently encountered problem in the dental office, for which evidence-based causal therapy possibilities are not yet available. We are currently performing a large-scale double-blind placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial to evaluate several management strategies for SB. So far, we have measured 35 participants, all of them clinically diagnosed bruxers (11 men; 24 women; mean age=39·2 ± 11·4 years). A first (baseline) night in the sleep laboratory confirmed their clinical diagnosis, i.e. all had more than four bruxism episodes per hour of sleep; (〉 4 EpiH). The baseline recordings were preliminarily analysed to establish a cut-off criterion for a polysomnographical SB diagnosis that, in addition to the previously established criterion (i.e. 〉 4 EpiH), also respects the time spent bruxing. We therefore calculated an index that expresses this aspect as a percentage of the total sleep time: the bruxism time index (BTI). The BTI was highly correlated with the number of EpiH (Pearson's correlation coefficient=0·92; P=0·000). Linear regression analysis revealed that a BTI of 〉 0·4% corresponds with the 〉 4 EpiH criterion (F-value for the significance of the overall model=146·2; P=0·000). Future analyses may yield an additional intensity (power) cut-off criterion as well. As the relationship between SB and jaw pain is still unclear, we also determined, in 28 of the 35 participants, the influence of self-reported (VAS) jaw pain during mouth opening before and after the first night on the BTI. BTIs in bruxers whose evening and/or morning VASs ≥ 10 mm (n=10) tended to be lower than those in bruxers whose VASs were less than 10 mm (n=18) (1·4 ± 1·0 and 2·7 ± 2·5%, respectively; Two sample t-test; T=1·98; P=0·059). This finding confirms previous suggestions in the literature that jaw pain might be associated with a reduced bruxism activity. This can be understood as a protective mechanism that prevents (further) overloading of the masticatory system. (Supported by the IOT.)
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2842.2002.01026_4.x
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