Orofacial Pain of Non-Odontogenic Cause-Retrospective Study on 100 Patients Referred to the Primary Dental Health Care

Abstract

Dijagnoza orofacijalne boli je esencijalna i često nedovoljno cijenjena sastavnica stomatološke prakse. Svrha ovoga retrospektivnog ispitivanja bila je ustanoviti uzroke, navesti dijagnostičke postupke i kliničke manifestacije neodontogene orofacijalne boli u 100 pacijenata koji su upućeni u primarnu stomatološku zaštitu. U naših bolesnika bol se je najčešće javljala u maksili, zatim mandibuli, uhu i TMZ-u. Upala je kod većine bila prateći simptom. Karakter boli opisan je kao duboka, jednostrana, tupa, izdrživa i pulsirajuća bol. 44 pacijenta su navela stres i podjedanko su raspoređeni po spolu. Prosječno trajanje simptoma prije dolaska stomatologu bilo je 4,23 mjeseca. Prosječno trajanje boli jednom kad bi počela bilo je 8 sati. Najčešći uzroci neodontogene boli su bili maligni tumori usne šupljine, bolesti TMZ-a i trigeminalna neuralgija.The diagnosis of orofacial pain is an essential and frequently undervalued component of dental practice. The aim of this retrospective study was to report causes, diagnostic procedures applied and clinical manifestations of non-odontogenic orofacial pain in patients referred to primary dental care. In our patients, pain most frequently occurred in the maxilla, followed by the mandible, ear and temporomandibular joint (TMJ). Out of the accompanying symptoms, inflammation was reported in most of the patients. The character of the pain was described as deep, unilateral, dull, bearable, and pulsing. Forty-four patients reported stress with equal distribution according to the gender of patients. The average duration of pain before seeking the professional help of a dentist was 4.23 months. The average duration of pain once it had started was 8 hours. Most frequent causes of non-odontogenic pain in our patients were malignant tumors in the oral cavity, followed by TMJ disorders and trigeminal neuralgia