The Influence of Exams Stress on Brux Activity in Russian Dental Students

Abstract

The study assessed stress and brux activity among dental students during exam (stress) and non-examination (non-stress) periods. The study was initiated as a single group design with the total number of participants 36 (25 females and 11 males). All the participants were examined twice (once in a stress period and once in a non-stress period) according to “Clinical Functional Analysis”, which includes questions about students’ medical and dental history, as well as muscle palpation results. Two «BruxCheckers» (BCs) were applied, one for the upper jaw, the other for the lower jaw, two times for examination and non-examination periods. After the use, the «BCs» were photographed according to the research protocol and the abraded facets area on «BCs» was calculated in square millimeters. The research showed that during a stress period students may have headaches, cramps and pain in shoulder and neck muscles. The research also revealed that during the stress situation the abraded area shifts from frontal teeth to chewing teeth and brux episodes can occur more frequently and with a higher load. Chewing teeth (premolars in our study) are more adapted and more useful for such a condition. Accordingly, our students shifted their brux behavior from teeth 33 and 31 to teeth 15 and 24. Therefore, exams are a strong stress factor for dental students. In turn, prolongated stress can be an indicator of risk factor and have a negative effect for health of the craniomandibular system.