https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2236-8546
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Abstract
Objective
To evaluate treatment outcome of a jaw exercise (JE) intervention program combined with an information/counselling program (IC) vs. information/counselling alone.
Materials and methods
A clinical sample of 83 adolescents, experiencing painful clicking or catching/locking of the jaw, and diagnosed with symptomatic disc displacement with reduction according to RDC/TMD, were randomly assigned to JE/IC or IC program. Both programs were internet-delivered. The adolescents were examined clinically at baseline, at a 2-month mid-evaluation, and at 4months posttreatment by examiners blinded to which programs the adolescents were assigned to.
Results
The JE/IC group showed significantly more improvements of painful catching/locking (p = .017), eating ability (p = .006) and of their jaw function limitation (p = .026) compared to the IC group. Significantly more adolescents in the JE/IC group also reported a ≥50% improvement of the catching/locking of the jaw with pain (p = .024) and for eating ability (p = .034) based on a severity index. Treatment method credibility and satisfaction were also significantly higher in the JE/IC group.
Conclusion
The internet-delivered JE/IC program showed a better outcome compared to IC alone. The former is thus a feasible and cost-effective treatment for adolescents with symptomatic disc displacement with reduction.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank research assistants Jeanette Wernersson, Gun Hector, Christina Holmgren, and Lotti Nierzwicki for their help in carrying out this study.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).