A novel vibratory stimulation-based occlusal splint for alleviation of TMD painful symptoms: A pilot study

This pilot study introduces a novel vibratory stimulation-based occlusal splint (VibOS) for management of pain related to temporomandibular disorders (TMD). The study sample consisted of 10 patients (mean age: 40·5±13·7years, male/female: 3/7) who were using stabilisation splints for more than 2months prior to the study onset and still complained of pain. Patients utilised the active and inactive VibOS during 15days in a crossover designed clinical trial. The analysed variables were self-reported VAS pain levels and number of painful sites to palpation (PSP). Statistical analysis was performed with repeated measures anova. At baseline, mean VAS pain levels for group I and II were 45·6±21·0mm and 37·4±16·3mm, respectively. Comparison between these baseline values showed no statistical difference (P>0·05, unpaired t-test). In group I, the inactive VibOS caused a slight increase in VAS pain levels, whereas the active VibOS promoted a significant decrease in VAS pain levels and PSP (P<0·01). In group II, which received the active VibOS first, a significant decrease in VAS levels (P<0·05) and in PSP (P<0·01) was observed. No significant decrease in VAS pain levels or PSP (P>0·05) was observed with the use of the inactive VibOS. In conclusion, this study demonstrated a good tendency of this novel VibOS in the alleviation of painful symptoms related to TMD after a 15-day management period compared to control VibOS.