The lack of sufficient scientific evidence to support the role of occlusion as an etiologic factor in craniomandibular disorders gave credit to the role of the psycho-emotional factors able to predispose to this condition and to perpetuate it. Among them, anxiety holds a prioritary position. The aim of the research was to shed light on the signs and symptoms of craniomandibular disfunction manifested in a group of patients and on their possible association with psycho-emotional characteristics (stress, anxiety). Materials and method. A cross-sectional study was performed on a group of 54 subjects (16M, 38W), by means of a screening questionnaire for craniomandibular disfunction, containing 20 questions structured on five issues: pain, disfunction, parafunction, psycho-emotional status, trauma/iatrogenic condition. For psychological examination, the STAI I and II (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) questionnaires were applied. These psychometric instruments, containing 20 items, provide the current level of anxiety scores of the subject and the degree to which he/she is prone to anxiety. The NCSS Dawson edition statistical program was used to analyze the collected data. Results. The score of psycho-emotional characteristics evaluation correlates with the severity of craniomandibular disfunction (r = 0.5743). The specific score of the signs and symptoms manifested in craniomandibular disfunctions shows a good correlation with the disfunctional condition (0.7737). In the investigated group, fewer subjects assessed anxiety, however the predisposition to anxiety is the dominant trend, more evident in male subjects. Conclusions. Within the limits of this investigation, the psycho-emotional factors included in the screening questionnaire appear to play a role in defining a prioritary craniomandibular disfunctional state. At the same time, the results provided by the used psychometric instruments are less conclusive. Further studies are required, on more numeorus groups of subjects, for permitting a more reliable comparison between the data of the screening questionnaire for craniomandibular disfunction and those of psychological evaluation (STAI I and II).
Keywords:- anxiety
- craniomandibular disfunction
- depression
- psychological evaluation.