The use of anterior mid stop point splint in comparison with full coverage splint therapy in the management of temporomandibular joint dysfunctions

Abstract EN

Background : The effectiveness of occlusal splint in decreasing the symptoms of temporomandibular joint dysfunctions has been demonstrated in many studies.

There are many designs of acrylic splint fabricated as a therapeutic device in the management of various TMJ problems.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of anterior mid stop point splint (AMSP) in comparison with the full coverage (conventional flat splint) in the management of temporomandibular joint dysfunctions.

Subject and methods : Thirty patients were chosen for this study.

They were of both genders with age ranged between (21-60) years.

They were divided into two groups.

The first group (15 patients) was treated with anterior mid stop point splint, while the second group (15 patients) was treated with full coverage flat surface splint.

Clinical and electromyography evaluation were performed for each patient before and after treatment.

Results : It has shown that 93.3 % improvement of the symptoms of pain in the first treatment group (AMSP splint), and 53.3 % improvement in the second treatment group (full coverage splint) during the course of treatment (45 days).

The opening capacity was increased in an average of 9.9 mm and 7.3 mm for the same groups respectively in the same period.

Electromyographic investigation showed 40.54 % resting potential of temporalis in patients treated with anterior mid stop point, While 18.21 % resting potential of temporalis muscle in patient treated with full coverage splint in 45 days of therapy.

In other word, the ability to re-establish a smooth coordinated muscular-skeletal relation, balanced occlusion, and effective function through treatment was evaluated in this project.

Conclusion : The findings demonstrated that anterior mid stop point splint is more useful in comparison with smooth surface full coverage splint in the management of temporomandibular dysfunctions.