Vibratory splint therapy for decreasing sleep clenching: A pilot study

Abstract

Objective To estimate the effect of a vibratory splint (VibS) in reducing sleep clenching (SC) and TMD pain. Methods Target sample was consecutive 19 TMD patients attending the Orofacial Pain Clinic at FFO-FOUSP. Patients used the VibS or acrylic occlusal splint (OS) as control for 14 days. Outcome variables were SC frequency and pain, assessed by a portable electromyography detector-analyzer (BiteStrip™) and 100 mm VAS, respectively. Statistical analyses were performed with two-way repeated measures ANOVA, and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). Results VibS promoted a marked decrease, whereas acrylic OS increased SC frequency after two weeks of use. Due to a significant difference in initial VAS levels between VibS and control group, the effect of the two splints on TMD pain could not be clearly estimated. Conclusion The results suggested that VibS can potentially be used to reduce SC frequency, although further studies with larger sample size are necessary to confirm these findings.

Effect of treatment with a full-occlusion biofeedback splint on sleep bruxism and TMD pain: a randomized controlled clinical trial

“…Ethical approval All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the research committee (the Ethical Committee of the medical faculty of Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, reference number 473- 14) and with the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and subsequent amendments or comparable ethical standards.…”

“…Numerous studies have been conducted on bruxismrelated symptoms, its management, and the effect of biofeedback on SB. Reviews frequently mention study limitations and, hence, reasons to call for further research, including small sample sizes, a lack of randomization, inadequacies in blinding methodologies, concealment of allocation, handling of withdrawals and losses, selective or incomplete reporting, short test periods, the absence of a control group, a lack of adequate baseline data, and shortcomings in outcome reporting [13][14][15][16][17].…”

“…A pilot study by Gu et al [20] tested a dental splint with extrabuccal biofeedback and reported a significant reduction in the frequency and duration of bruxing events, but did not assess the effect on the level of pain. Hara et al [14] tested an occlusal splint with intrabuccal biofeedback and reported a reduction in SB frequency, but did not examine the duration of bruxing events. The authors reported that there was no significant impact on the level of pain.…”

Estudo da eficácia da placa vibratória no tratamento da disfunção temporomandibular: ensaio clínico randomizado e cego

“…Alguns estudos elaborados com a associação do princípio da vibração como biofeedback à placa oclusal, obtiveram resultados promissores: inibição do bruxismo, evidenciado em relato de caso (Watanabe et al, 2001), redução em 77% da dor muscular crônica em 4 pacientes que antes utilizavam a placa estabilizadora há mais de 6 meses (Hara et al, 2013a), diminuição significante da dor espontânea e dor à palpação, em um estudo piloto (Hara et al, 2013b) e diminuição da frequência do apertamento noturno em um estudo com 19 pacientes (Hara et al, 2020).…”

“…Esses resultados suportam pesquisas anteriores que mostraram que as placas acrílicas não diminuem a frequência de parafunções durante o sono, após duas semanas de uso. Entretanto, o estímulo vibratório mostrou-se eficaz na redução dessa frequência, evidenciando sua potencialidade para evitar a cronificação de sintomas dolorosos de DTM, além de ser um sistema seguro e de baixo custo (Hara et al, 2020).…”