Efficacy of conservative approaches on pain relief in patients with temporomandibular joint disorders: a systematic review with network meta-analysis

ABSTRACT

Objective

The aim of this systematic review with meta-analysis was to evaluate the efficacy of conservative interventions in pain relief in patients with intracapsular temporomandibular disorders (TMD).

Methods

PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science were systematically searched until January 1^st, 2022 to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) presenting patients with diagnosis of intracapsular TMD according to the Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (DC/TMD), conservative approaches as interventions, and pain intensity as outcome.

Results

Out of 3372 papers, 13 RCTs were included, with 844 study participants. Most of them (n = 7) investigated the efficacy of splint appliance. Meta-analysis revealed that rehabilitative interventions had a significant overall effect size of 0.75 [0.17, 1.34], reporting splint appliance and laser therapy as significantly effective treatments.

Conclusion

Findings of this systematic review with network meta-analysis suggested that conservative approaches might be effective in pain relief of intracapsular TMD patients.

KEYWORDS:

• temporomandibular joint disorders
• temporomandibular joint
• pain
• occlusal splint
• laser therapy
• rehabilitation

Disclosure statement

The authors report there are no competing interests to declare.

Authors’ contribution

Conceptualization, M.F. and A.d.S.; methodology, L.P. and A.d.S.; formal analysis, M.F., D.C., and N.M.; data curation, L.N., N.M., G.M., and A.d.S.; writing—original draft preparation, M.F. and L.N.; writing—review and editing, L.P. and A.d.S.; visualization, A.G., D.C., N.M., G.M., F.d.A., A.A.; supervision, A.G., L.P., and A.d.S. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.