COVID-19 Infection Does not Worsen Symptoms of Temporomandibular Disorders

Conference presentation

• Author: Ema Vrbanović
• Author: Iva Z Alajbeg
• Author: Marko Zlendić
• Author: Ivan Alajbeg
• Author's institution: University of Zagreb; School of Dental Medicine; (Department of Removable Prosthodontics)
• Scientific / art field, discipline and subdiscipline: BIOMEDICINE AND HEALTHCARE; Dental Medicine; Prosthetic Dentistry

Abstract (english)

Objectives: In order to assess the potential relationship between COVID-19 and temporomandibular disorders (TMD), we aimed to investigate whether TMD symptoms and oral behaviors (OB) may have increased in TMD patients during the two-year period of the COVID-19 pandemic. This relationship may be a consequence of the infection itself, or, since stress is a risk factor for both TMD and OB, due to a psychological stress that a pandemic period might cause in general.

Methods: An online survey was sent to our cohort of 186 previously diagnosed TMD patients (DC/TMD). The questions in the survey addressed the possible TMD symptoms and OB changes during the past 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic, and patients' tendency to feel depressive or anxious during the pandemic. We compared the obtained data between patients who had COVID-19 infection with those who didn't. Chi-square test and Spearman’s correlation were used for data analysis.

Results: The response rate was 63.98%; 57.9% of individuals confirmed having had COVID-19 diagnosis and 42.1% denied COVID-19 infection. The percentage of subjects who developed new TMD symptoms or their symptoms worsened during the pandemic was 40.33%. The percentage of individuals reporting an increase in OB was 27.73% for day-time grinding, 26.89% for night-time grinding, and 19.33% for other habits. There weren’t significant differences in the presence of participants with reported new symptoms (TMD symptoms or OB) between those that previously had COVID-19 diagnosis and those that weren't infected (p>0.05). Also, no correlation was present between symptoms of anxiety/depression and previous COVID-19 diagnosis (p>0.05).

Conclusion: TMD and OB showed an increase during the period of COVID-19 pandemic, but previous COVID-19 diagnosis isn't associated with the development of new or worsening of existing TMD symptoms or OB. The cause of the worsening of TMD symptoms and OB during the pandemic is likely a consequence of stress caused by the pandemic in general.

Support: Croatian Science Foundation Project IP-2019-04-6211 (PI: Iva Alajbeg)
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04694274. Registered on 01/04/202

• Keywords (english): temporomandibular disorders; COVID-19; pandemic; oral behavioral habits
• Language: english
• Peer review: Peer review - international
• URN:NBN: urn:nbn:hr:127:846600
• Presentation date: 2022-09-15
• Conference: Title: 2022 Pan European Region Oral Health Congress; Acronym: IADR PER; Location: Marseille, France; Organizer: IADR PER; Start date: 2023-09-15; End date: 2023-09-17; Assembly type: Poster
• Type of resource: Text
• Access conditions: Open access
• Created on: 2023-10-31 17:53:18