Use of thermography as an auxiliary method to diagnose orofacial pain: a case study

Abstract

Thermography is an auxiliary diagnostic method widely used to assess soft tissues and thus diagnose neuropathic or inflammatory pain. The objective of this paper was to report a case in which thermography was used as an auxiliary method to diagnose neuropathic pain. The patient in question is a 43-year-old woman with complaints of pain and sensitivity in the upper and lower left dental arches, particularly when consuming alcoholic beverages. The case was assessed with thermography, followed by the Cold Stress Test. The symmetry of the thermographic images and the localized changes helped rule out neuropathic problems and diagnose the orofacial inflammatory pain. The thermography was used as an auxiliary instrument to diagnose orofacial pain, proving to be efficient. Also, the thermography helped rule out changes originating in peripheral, small-fiber, and inflammatory neuropathies, aiding the patient’s differential diagnosis. The thermography also helped identify the thermo-anatomical points and, with the qualitative and quantitative analyses, noninvasively investigate the possible causes of the orofacial pain reported by the patient.