Influence of kinesiologic tape on postoperative swelling, pain and trismus after zygomatico-orbital fractures.

Surgical treatment of zygomatico-orbital (ZO) fractures is a common procedure in maxillofacial surgery. Often accompanied by pain, trismus and swelling, postoperative morbidity is a major disadvantage, affecting patients' quality of life. The appliance of kinesiologic tape (KT) improves the blood and lymph flow, removing congestions of lymphatic fluid and haemorrhages. The aim of this study was to find out if the application of kinesiologic tape prevents or improves swelling, pain and trismus after zygomatico-orbital fracture surgery, improving patients' postoperative quality of life. A total of 30 patients were assigned for treatment of zygomatico-orbital fractures and were randomly divided into treatment either with or without kinesiologic tape. Tape was applied directly after surgery and maintained for at least 5 days postoperatively. Facial swelling was quantified using a five-line measurement at six specific time points. Pain and degree of mouth opening was measured. Patient's subjective feeling and satisfaction was queried. The results of this study show that application of kinesiologic tape after zygomatico-orbital surgery significantly reduced the incidence of swelling with an earlier swelling maximum, and decreased the maximum turgidity for more than 60% during the first 2 days after surgery. Although, kinesiologic tape has no significant influence on pain control and trismus, mouth opening increased earlier after operation in the kinesiologic tape group compared to the no-kinesiologic tape group. Furthermore, patients with kinesiologic tape felt significantly lower morbidity than those without kinesiologic tape. Therefore kinesiologic tape is a promising, simple, less traumatic, economical approach, which is free from adverse reaction and improves patients' quality of life.

Psychiatric morbidity among patients with oral submucous fibrosis: a controlled study.

AIM: The study aimed to evaluate the association between oral submucous fibrosis (OSF) and psychiatric morbidity in a controlled manner. METHODS: Matched patients were divided into three groups: Those with areca nut chewing habits with OSF (Group 1; n=50); those with areca nut chewing habits without OSF (Group 2; n=50); those without areca habits and with dental problems other than OSF (Group 3; n=50). The Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview was used to assess psychiatric morbidity. Dependence to areca products was also assessed. RESULTS: Sixteen (32%) Group 1 patients had psychiatric morbidity compared to one (2%) in Group 2 and two (4%) in Group 3 (P<0.001). Further, psychiatric morbidity was significantly higher among patients with advanced stages of OSF. In Groups 1 and 2, 49 (98%) and 47 (94%) patients, respectively, had dependence on areca products. CONCLUSION: This study has suggested the association of substantial psychiatric morbidity among patients with OSF. In addition to mandatory psychiatric management of these patients, future research should be targeted at a prospective evaluation of a cause and effect relationship as well as at psychiatric interventions.

Evaluation of the muscle relaxant cyclobenzaprine after third-molar extraction.

BACKGROUND: Pain, swelling and trismus are undesirable effects of extraction of impacted mandibular third molars. The authors conducted a study to evaluate the effectiveness of the muscle relaxant cyclobenzaprine when used as a supplement to cryotherapeutic, antibiotic and steroidal anti-inflammatory treatment with the aim of reducing undesirable consequences after third-molar extraction. METHODS: The authors conducted a prospective, randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled clinical trial involving 50 participants aged 18 to 29 years randomly assigned to receive cyclobenzaprine or the placebo. The authors used a split-mouth design, so each participant acted as his or her own control. For each participant, the authors extracted one impacted mandibular third molar on each side of the mouth at different times. Participants received 10 milligrams of cyclobenzaprine or a placebo once per day the day before surgery, the day of surgery and the first day after surgery. The authors assessed the participants' postoperative pain by means of a visual analog scale at four, six, eight, 12, 24 and 48 hours. They measured the participants' swelling and maximal interincisor distance at 48 hours and seven days. RESULTS: The authors assessed both sides of each participant's mouth for differences in pain, swelling and trismus. They found no statistically significant differences between sides of the mouth regarding these three variables. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this trial indicate that the influence of cyclobenzaprine over pain, swelling and trismus does not justify prescribing additional medication for patients undergoing third-molar extraction. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: The muscle relaxant cyclobenzaprine was ineffective in reducing pain, swelling and trismus after third-molar extraction.

Short-term changes in temporomandibular joint function in subjects with cleft lip and palate treated with maxillary distraction osteogenesis.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the short-term effects of maxillary distraction osteogenesis (DO) on temporomandibular joint (TMJ) function in 21 subjects with cleft lip and palate (CLP). Design - Morphological changes in the maxillofacial region were measured using lateral cephalometric radiographs taken immediately before (pre-DO) and after DO (post-DO) and 1 year after DO (1-year follow-up). A questionnaire was evaluated using a visual analog scale. A chi-square test was used to compare the prevalence of TMJ symptoms between pre-DO and 1-year follow-up. The Spearman correlation coefficient was used to determine the correlation between changes in cephalometric variables and TMJ symptoms in association with maxillary DO. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Results - The ANB (anteroposterior relationship of the maxilla with the mandible) angle and the mandibular plane angle at pre-DO, post-DO, and 1-year follow-up were -4.3 degrees , +5.8 degrees , +4.3 degrees and 32.1 degrees , 33.5 degrees , 33.6 degrees , respectively. The average amounts of anterior and downward movement of the maxilla at post-DO and 1-year follow-up were 8.3, -1.3 and 0.9, 1.1 mm, respectively. The prevalence of TMJ symptoms showed no significant increase in association with maxillary DO. Moreover, there was no significant correlation between changes in cephalometric variables and TMJ symptoms. Conclusion - These results suggest that there was no short-term (i.e., up to 1 year after DO) effect of maxillary DO on TMJ function in subjects with CLP.

Trismus in patients with oropharyngeal cancer: relationship with dose in structures of mastication apparatus.

BACKGROUND: Our aim was to assess the correlation between the radiation therapy (RT) dose to the mastication apparatus and trismus of oropharyngeal cancer patients. METHODS: Eighty-one patients treated with RT were analyzed. The masseter, pterygoid, and temporalis muscles and the coronoid and condyl were delineated on axial CT slices. The mean dose in these structures was correlated with outcome of quality of life questionnaires. RESULTS: Fifty-six (88%) patients responded; 16% of the patients scored grade 3/4 on the Head & Neck 35 "opening mouth" question. A significant correlation was observed between dose in masseter and pterygoid muscles and trismus (p= .02). CONCLUSION: Patients treated with brachytherapy received a lower dose in masticatory muscles. A steep dose-effect relationship between mean dose in masseter muscle and pterygoid muscles and the probability of having trismus complaints was observed; with every additional 10 Gy to the pterygoid muscle, an increase of the probability of trismus of 24% was observed.

Oral health condition in southern Chinese after radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma: extent and nature of the problem.

OBJECTIVE: To measure the oral health status of southern Chinese nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) survivors 1-4 years after radiotherapy. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A total of 109 subjects participated in this cross-sectional study. Thirty-eight subjects were NPC survivors, 40 subjects were patients newly diagnosed with NPC and 31 were healthy subjects. Verified clinical examination techniques were used to assess limitation of jaw opening, the presence of mucositis, candidiasis, dental caries, periodontal disease [community periodontal index (CPI)] including attachment loss (ALoss) and prosthetic status/need. Differences among three groups were tested by chi-squared and Kruskal-Wallis tests. Relationships between selected clinical variables and radiation parameters were analysed using Spearman's rank correlation coefficients. RESULTS: The NPC survivors attended for dental treatment more frequently than the other groups (P < 0.01). NPC survivors had significant xerostomia (92%, P < 0.01), trismus (29%, P < 0.01), a higher prevalence of clinical candidiasis (24%, P < 0.01), a greater DMFT (16.4 +/- 7.0, P < 0.01), more decay/filled roots (2.1 +/- 2.9, P = 0.01) compared with new NPC patients and controls. No difference was found in CPI, ALoss, prosthetic status and need between groups. Dry mouth and tooth hypersensitivity were the most common oral problems perceived by the NPC survivors. CONCLUSION: Despite having regular dental follow-ups, oral health was compromised in NPC survivors 1-4 years postradiotherapy.

Trismus and pain after removal of impacted lower third molars.

PURPOSE: This study evaluated trismus and pain after removal of impacted lower third molars and investigated whether these responses were related to difficulty of surgery. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A consecutive series of 104 patients, all of whom underwent removal of an impacted lower third molar under local surgery, was studied. Difficulty of surgery was evaluated on a modified version of the Parant scale: I, extraction with forceps only; II, extraction by ostectomy; III, extraction by ostectomy and coronal section; IV, complex procedures. Trismus was evaluated in terms of maximum interincisal distance (MID) 1 and 5 days after surgery. Pain was evaluated on the basis of reported analgesic use 1 and 5 days after surgery. RESULTS: Among group I subjects, mean day 1 MID did not differ significantly (P > .05) from mean presurgery MID, whereas mean day 1 MID in groups II, III, and IV was significantly lower than before surgery. In groups II, III, and IV, mean day 5 MID remained lower than before surgery. The proportion of group I patients using analgesics was significantly lower on both days 1 and 5 than the proportion of patients using analgesics in groups II, III, and IV. In all groups, the proportion of patients using analgesics dropped significantly between days 1 and 5. CONCLUSION: Trismus is less severe after simple (forceps-only, grade I) extractions than after surgical extractions (grades II to IV). However, trismus severity after surgical extraction does not depend on difficulty of surgery. Pain, as revealed by reported analgesic use, is likewise less severe after simple extractions. Regardless of extraction type, pain declines between days 1 and 5 postsurgery.