People with temporomandibular disorders (TMD) and chronic migraine (CM) show generalized mechanical hyperalgesia with a marked disability, socioeconomic and personal impacts, says a recent cross-sectional analysis published in the Acta Odontologica Scandinavica Journal.

The research team evaluated mechanical hyperalgesia in the trigeminal and extra-trigeminal regions among 30 asymptomatic and 52 CM, and TMD participants were selected and assessed for maximal mouth opening (MMO), a series of self-reported factors, and pressure pain threshold (PPT).

During the PPTs comparison, the CM and TMD patients exhibited different expressions as compared to the asymptomatic participants. Depressive symptoms, craniofacial pain, and disability were used to predict the PPT for the trigeminal region. Further, in the extra-trigeminal region, disability and craniofacial pain were used to predict the pain-free MMO and depressive symptoms to PPT. Overall, a significant impression of generalized mechanical hyperalgesia was noticed among CM and TMD patients.