Aim:  In a randomized controlled trial investigate the short‐term effect of treatment with stabilization appliance compared with a control appliance in patients with temporomandibular disorders (TMD) of mainly myogenous pain. Material and methods:  Out of 926 referrals to the Department of Stomatognathic Physiology in Malmö for treatment of TMD during 2 years, 338 patients were clinically screened for possible participation in the study. Patients with mainly myogenous pain were selected from the original group of 926 patients. Sixty TMD patients with mainly myogenous pain were allocated at random into two equally sized groups: (T) treatment group given a stabilization appliance; (C) control group given a control appliance. The study was performed as a randomized controlled trial and comprised four visits. At the last visit, after 10 weeks of treatment with occlusal appliance, the treatment outcome was evaluated. Results:  There was a significant reduction of changes in overall severity of pain, reported pain during mandibular movements and reduction of changes in severity of headache in the treatment group compared with the control group. There was also a significant decreased number of tender masticatory muscles in the treatment group compared with the control group. Conclusion:  The results of this short‐term evaluation suggest that the stabilization appliance is effective in the alleviation of symptoms and signs in TMD patients of mainly myogenous pain. The stabilization appliance can therefore be recommended for TMD patients of mainly myogenous pain.

Stabilization appliances are commonly used in the treatment of temporomandibular disorders (TMD), although the treatment effects are not fully understood. This study evaluated the short-term efficacy of a stabilization appliance in patients with TMD of arthrogeneous origin, using a randomized, controlled, and double-blind design. Sixty patients were assigned to two equally sized groups: a treatment group given a stabilization appliance and a control group given a control appliance. Improvement of overall subjective symptoms was reported in both groups but significantly more often in the treatment group than in the control group (P = 0.006). Frequency of daily or constant pain showed a significant reduction in the treatment group (P = 0.02) compared with the control group. The results of this short-term evaluation showed that both the stabilization appliance and the control appliance had an effect on temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain. It is improbable that the difference observed between the groups is due to chance alone.

The aim of this study was to assess the short-term effect of occlusal adjustment on craniomandibular disorders. Fifty patients were randomly selected and divided into a treatment (T) and a control (C) group. The initial clinical examination and the follow-up were made by one observer and the occlusal adjustment by another. There were no significant differences between groups with regard to frequency of headaches, facial pain, pain on mandibular function, or duration of headaches and facial pain. Fifty-two percent of the patients in the treatment group and 20% of the patients in the control group reported reduced subjective symptoms overall at follow-up examination. The improvement was statistically significant within the T group and significantly greater than in the C group. There was no significant change within or between groups with regard to frequency of headaches, facial pain, or pain on mandibular movements. There was an almost significant difference between groups after treatment with regard to changes in the number of tender muscles. The results of this study indicate that occlusal adjustment provides a general subjective improvement of craniomandibular disorders.

The aim was to investigate long-term efficacy of a resilient appliance in patients with pain due to temporomandibular disorders (TMD). A randomised, controlled trial was performed in 80 recruited TMD pain patients. They were randomly allocated to one of two groups: treatment with a resilient appliance or treatment with a hard, palatal, non-occluding appliance. The primary treatment outcome was judged positive when patients' characteristic pain intensity decreased by at least 30%. Additional treatment outcomes were physical functioning, emotional functioning and headache. At the 12-month follow-up 50% of the patients in the treatment group and 42% in the control group had a 30% reduction of characteristic pain intensity, when calculated in an intent-to-treat analysis. Jaw function improved in both groups at the 6- and 12-month follow-up. Emotional functioning improved in both groups at the 6-month follow-up; an improvement concerning grade of depression was found in the control group at 12 months. Headache decreased in both groups at both follow-ups. There were no statistically significant differences found regarding primary and additional outcomes between groups at the 6- and 12-months follow-up. There was no statistically significant difference between the resilient appliance and the non-occluding control appliance in reducing TMD pain, physical functioning, emotional functioning and headache in a 12 months perspective.