Impact of trismus on health-related quality of life and mental health.

BACKGROUND: Trismus is a common symptom often related to the treatment for head and neck cancer and to temporomandibular disorders. The purpose of the present study was to measure the impact of trismus on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and mental health in patients with head and neck cancer and temporomandibular disorder. METHODS: We used the criteria for trismus of maximum interincisal opening (MIO) ≤35 mm and the study subjects responded to the following instruments: the Gothenburg Trismus Questionnaire (GTQ), the Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36), and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The study also comprised an age-matched and sex-matched control group without trismus. RESULTS: Patients with trismus reported significantly more dysfunction in all GTQ domains and more facial pain compared to the control group. The patients with head and neck cancer and trismus scored significantly lower on all SF-36 domains except general health compared to the control group, and the patients with temporomandibular disorder with trismus scored significantly lower in 3 of the 8 domains in SF-36. According to the HADS, a greater proportion of patients with head and neck cancer with trismus displayed more depression compared to the control group. CONCLUSION: The results showed that trismus is associated with a significant impact on HRQOL and that patients with trismus should be approached in a holistic way with respect for the underlying cause, treating not only the physical aspects of trismus but also addressing the patients' mental health.

The incidence of trismus and long-term impact on health-related quality of life in patients with head and neck cancer.

BACKGROUND: Trismus is a common symptom related to the treatment of head and neck (H&N) cancer. To date there are few prospective studies regarding the incidence of trismus and the patients' experience of trismus in daily life activities. The aim of the study was to assess the incidence of trismus in H&N cancer patients and the impact on health-related quality of life (HRQL), by evaluating the patients before and after oncological treatment. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We used the criteria for trismus of maximum interincisal opening (MIO) ≤ 35 mm and measured the patients at several occasions before and after treatment during one year. The patients answered the HRQL questionnaires EORTC QLQ C30, EORTC QLQ H&N 35, Gothenburg Trismus Questionnaire (GTQ) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). RESULTS: The incidence of trismus was 9% pre-treatment and 28% at the one-year follow-up post-treatment. The highest incidence, 38%, was found six months post-treatment. Patients with tumours of the tonsils were most prone to develop trismus. Patients with trismus reported greater HRQL impairments with regard to the GTQ domains; mouth opening (p < 0.001), jaw-related problems (p < 0.05), eating limitations (p < 0.05) and muscular tension (p < 0.001) six months post-treatment. EORTC QLQ H&N 35 scores indicated clinically significantly more problems with dry mouth, swallowing and pain for patients with trismus, 6-12 months post-treatment. Furthermore, all patients reported pain, anxiety and depression pre- and post-treatment. CONCLUSION: The incidence of trismus in patients with H&N cancer is non-negligible. Trismus severely impairs HRQL and negatively affects daily life activities in patients with H&N cancer. Further studies regarding symptomatic treatment of patients with trismus are highly warranted. The symptom-specific questionnaire GTQ is useful to identify the problems in this group of patients given it is responsive to showing change over time.

Development and validation of the Gothenburg Trismus Questionnaire (GTQ).

OBJECTIVES: To develop and validate a comprehensive, self-administered questionnaire for patients with limited ability to open the mouth, trismus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We derived the Gothenburg Trismus Questionnaire (GTQ) from empirical evidence in the medical literature and interviews with medical experts as well as patients. The draft version was tested in a pilot study (n=18). Patients with a maximal incisal opening (MIO) of ⩽35mm were included. The study comprised patients with benign jaw-related conditions (n=51), patients treated for head and neck (H&N) cancer (n=78) and an age- and gender-matched control group without trismus (n=129). RESULTS: The GTQ instrument was well accepted by the patients, with satisfactory compliance and low rates of missing items. After item reduction, due to items not being conceptually relevant and/or low factor loadings, the GTQ demonstrated high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha 0.72-0.90), good construct validity and known-group validity. CONCLUSION: We developed a trismus-specific self-administered questionnaire, the GTQ, that showed good psychometric properties. We suggest this questionnaire, that has clear clinical relevance, to be adopted and used in clinical practice and in research, acting as a screening tool as well as an endpoint in intervention and jaw physiotherapy/rehabilitation studies.

Trismus in head and neck cancer patients in Sweden: incidence and risk factors.

BACKGROUND: The aim was to retrospectively investigate trismus (reduced mandible mobility) development in specified head and neck (H&N) cancer diagnosis according to different radiotherapy dosage regimens. MATERIAL/METHODS: Sixty-nine out of 246 patients with different H&N cancer diagnoses and available maximum interincisal opening (MIO) measurements before and after treatment were analyzed according to age, gender, radiation dose, tumor site and stage, and Karnofsky Performance Status Scale index. MIO was measured over time (range: 3-48 months), with a cutoff criterion for trismus of 35 mm. RESULTS: Overall, 42% of the patients had post-treatment MIO <35 mm, and trismus incidence was highest in patients treated for parotid gland tumors followed by those treated for nasopharyngeal cancers. The mean MIO values at baseline were significantly different (p=0.0078) between patients who developed trismus (i.e. MIO <35 mm; mean: 43 mm) and those who did not (mean: 51 mm). The trismus patients also had significantly larger tumors (p=0.0437), poorer physical function before start of treatment (p=0.0344), and had more often received a higher total tumor radiation dose (p=0.0418). CONCLUSIONS: This study reports a high incidence of trismus in H&N cancer patients after treatment. Furthermore, it was found that poor physical function before the start of treatment and high external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) dosages (>50 Gy) were related to significantly more trismus. Future prospective studies are needed to provide a better understanding of different risk factors associated with trismus development, the impact on health-related quality of life, and the effects of early treatment.