Indian Journal of Dental Research (Jan 2009)

Association between symptoms of temporomandibular disorders and gender, morphological occlusion, and psychological factors in a group of university students

  • Bonjardim Leonardo,
  • Lopes-Filho Ricardo,
  • Amado Guilherme,
  • Albuquerque Ricardo,
  • Goncalves Suzane

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 20, no. 2
pp. 190 – 194

Abstract

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Aim: The purpose of this study was to find out the prevalence of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) in a sample of university students and its relationship to gender, occlusion, and psychological factors. Materials and Methods: The sample comprised 196 subjects, aged 18-25 years. The TMD degree was evaluated using an anamnestic questionnaire. Morphologic occlusion was evaluated according to Angle classification (classes I, II, and III). The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), a 14-item self-administered rating scale developed specifically to identify anxiety and depression in nonpsychiatric medical outpatients, was used to assess the levels of anxiety (HADSa) and depression (HADSd). Statistical Analysis: The incidence of TMD level, malocclusion, anxiety, and depression in both genders was calculated as percentages. Association between TMD degree and occlusion, HADSa, and HADSd was tested using the Chi-square test. Results: According to our results, 50% of the subjects had TMD, but it was of moderate or severe degree in only 9.18% of them. No statistically significant association could be found between TMD and gender or occlusion. TMD was found to have statistically significant association with HADSa but not with HADSd. Conclusion : A high prevalence of TMD was found in this student population; however, most of the cases could be classified as mild. Of the variables studied, only HADSa had a statistically significant association with TMD.

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