Can palpation-induced muscle pain pattern contribute to the differential diagnosis among temporomandibular disorders, primary headaches phenotypes and possible bruxism?

The evaluation of possible differences in the distribution or characteristics of palpation-induced pain in the masticatory muscles could be valuable in terms of diagnostic assessment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of different combinations of anterior temporalis (AT) and masseter palpation-induced pain in the diagnostic of temporomandibular disorder (TMD), primary headaches and bruxism. A total of 1200 dental records of orofacial pain adult patients were analyzed. The outcomes were dichotomously classified (presence/absence) as following: a) AT and/or masseter palpation-induced pain; b) myogenous TMD; c) temporomandibular joint (TMJ) arthralgia (arthrogenous TMD); d) migraine; e) tension-type headache (TTH); f) self-reported bruxism. Binomial logistic regression model (α = 5%) was applied to the data considering the palpation-induced muscle pain as the dependent variable. Mean age (SD) were 35.7 years (13.4) for 635 included dental records (83% females). Myogenous and arthrogenous TMD, migraine, TTH and bruxism were mainly associated with, respectively, masseter palpation-induced pain (p