Evaluation of symptoms and signs of temporomandibular joint disorder and the prevalence of parafunction habits in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is an inflammatory autoimmune disease, affecting multiple joints. Temporomandibular joint disorders (TMD) are common in these patients. Also, parafunctional habits can lead to signs and symptoms of TMD. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of TMD and parafunctional habits in patients with RA.

Forty patients with RA (according to ACR-1987 criteria) participated in this cross-sectional study. The patients’ information was collected by clinical examination and questionnaire. The DAS-28 criteria were employed to determine the disease severity. Thereafter, the TMD (according to RDC/TMD criteria) and parafunctional habits were compared to the control group (n=40).

85% of RA patients had at least one sign or symptom of TMD. The prevalence of joint sound and jaw deviation in patients with RA were 75 and 27.5%, respectively. These values were significantly higher than the values in the control group. A comparison between parafunctional habits demonstrated that both groups had the same frequency for bruxism and clenching. The masticatory muscle tenderness was reported in 32.5% of RA patients.

The prevalence of TMD in patients with RA is considerably higher than in healthy group. Unlike patient’s expressions, more tooth wear and muscle tenderness may indicate the probability of prevalence of bruxism and clenching in these patients.