Temporomandibular disorders (TMD) in children and adolescents: prevalence, risk factors and diagnostics of TMD in children and adolescents.

Abstract

Aims: The purpose of our study is to systematically review the literature concerning prevalence, risk factors and diagnostics of TMD in children and adolescents in order to find methods for early detection. Through our study we hope to direct dentists to an evidence-based approach concerning children and adolescents by making a screening guideline. Material and methods: Systematic search of the dental literature was performed via Pubmed and using Google search engine. Unsystematic search was done in “Svenske tandläkartidningen”. Search terms used were for instance: “TMD children”, “TMD pain”, “Temporomandibular dysfunction children” and “Temporomandibular dysfunction adolescent”. The primary selection of articles was based on the articles title and abstract. After reading the articles the articles which were relevant for our review were chosen. Conclusions: The prevalence of TMD in children and adolescents is difficult to establish. There are several risk factors that can be used for predicting signs and symptoms of TMD in adult age, but they cannot be used for predicting manifest TMD. Diagnostics can be based on questions and clinical evaluation, the Clinical Dysfunction Index (Di) and/or the Research Diagnostic criteria (RDC/TMD). More research needs to be done, and the studies should use the same diagnostic criteria, examination methods and population sampling so that the articles are comparable. Keywords: temporomandibular dysfunction, children and adolescents, prevalence, risk factors, diagnostics