Prevalence of Temporomandibular Disorders Between 2015-2021: A Literature Review

Abstract

The prevalence of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) is significantly high around the world. We conducted a literature review to determine the prevalence of TMD globally and in Saudi Arabia based on published studies. This review article collected 35 full-text articles after searching PubMed for TMD prevalence between 2015-2021. Assessing the prevalence of TMDs is important for several reasons, including providing an overview of the incidence of such disorders, educating the community, clarifying the gender and age group with the highest prevalence, establishing a program to prepare specialists to treat these disorders, and identifying the appropriate number of specialists by comparing TMD prevalence to Saudi Arabia's census. Out of 35 selected articles, thirty studies were done outside Saudi Arabia, and five were local. Less than 40% prevalence of TMD has been reported with associated factors such as gender, psychological status, and age. The female gender has shown a higher TMD rate than the male gender. Some authors have suggested conducting a temporomandibular joint (TMJ) assessment in the pediatric clinic. Moreover, TMD screening is an important tool for every patient visiting the dental clinic to assess TMJ status and treat TMD at early stages, especially in non-painful cases.

Novel Diagnostic and Therapeutic Approaches to Temporomandibular Dysfunction: A Narrative Review

“…Gender and age were not defined as exclusion criteria for this narrative review; however, TMD has been shown to present in higher frequency and severity in females than males, with peak severity between ages of 20 and 40, which is consistent with the demographic data of the patients enrolled in each study reviewed [ 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 ].…”

Causal effects of educational attainment on temporomandibular disorders and the mediating pathways: A Mendelian randomization study

“…1 As one of the most important indicators of socioeconomic status, educational attainment (EA) with a higher degree has been demonstrated to be associated with lower TMDs risk using both machinelearning and epidemiological techniques. [8][9][10] Moreover, both the public health and dentistry communities have advocated strategies aimed at managing modifiable lifestyle behaviours and psychological factors, such as smoking restriction and stress intervention, to curb the epidemic of TMDs. 1,11 Given the pivotal influence of education on human behaviour and well-being, we hypothesized that lifestyle choices and psychological factors may mediate the associations between EA and TMDs.…”

“…However, considering inherent biases, confounding factors and the potential for reverse causality in observational studies, it is important to acknowledge the challenges in establishing a direct causal link between EA and TMDs. 9,10 Mendelian randomization (MR) has been extensively utilized in establishing causal relationships by leveraging specific genetic variants directly relevant to a particular exposure. 12,13 The random allocation of genetic variants during fertilization, mirroring the principles of randomised controlled trials, substantially diminishes the likelihood of confounding elements, such as sex and age, introducing bias into causal inferences.…”

“…Evidence for causal mediating pathways could not only elucidate the aetiology of TMDs but also help identify intermediate targets that enable intervention to mitigate the adverse effects of lower EA. However, considering inherent biases, confounding factors and the potential for reverse causality in observational studies, it is important to acknowledge the challenges in establishing a direct causal link between EA and TMDs 9,10 …”

Association Between Oral Behaviors and Painful Temporomandibular Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Study in the General Population

“…The prevalence of TMDs is significantly high globally. 3 Studies targeting Chinese college students and medical students showed the prevalence of TMD were 29.1% and 31.7%, respectively. 4 A Canadian survey indicated that up to 50% of adults may experience PT-related symptoms, including pain and functional disturbances in joint and muscle activity.…”