RESUMO
Background. Many studies have reported significant pain reduction with low-level laser therapy (LLLT) in acute and chronic mus-culoskeletal pain conditions. Objective. The purpose of this study is to clinically evaluate the effectiveness of LLLT for treatment of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) arthritis. Methodology. This was a clinical trial that included 20 patients with TMJ arthritis. Patients were randomly assigned into two groups of 10 each. Patients of the first group were subjected to LLLT during four weeks, together with standard nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) treatment for TMJ arthritis. Patients were evaluated before treatment (T1), after six sessions of laser therapy (T2), after 12 laser applications (T3), and 1 month after the last application (T4). Patients of the second group received only standard NSAIDs treatment for TMJ arthritis. They were evaluated at the same intervals of the first group. At each evaluation, the maximum mouth opening was measured by a millimeter ruler, and patients were asked about the presence or absence TMJ pain. The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was used to quantify pain at palpation. Results. All participants were males, and aged between 41 and 70 years old. In LLLT and NSAIDs group follow up of maximum mouth opening in mm showed a significant improvement. The same significant improvement was noted in NSAIDs group. Comparison between LLLT and NSAIDs group and NSAIDs group showed a significant improvement in favor of the LLLT and NSAIDs group during the 3 follow up periods. Same improvement in favor for LLLT and NSAIDs group was noted in the VAS. Conclusion. LLLT in patients with TMJ arthritis is a safe and effective technique
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