The associations of TMJ pain and bone characteristics on the activities of daily living

The aim of this investigation was to analyze the associations of TMJ pain/discomfort and bone characteristics on the activities of daily living in a population based study. Methods: The study included 95 randomly selected participants. The impact of temporomandibular joint pain/discomfort on the daily activeties was assessed by using the daily living scale by List and Helkimo (1995). The levels of serum type I collagen telopeptide fragments (P1NP), C-telopeptide crosslaps of type I collagen (CTX-1), and vitamin D (25(OH)D) were analysed. The Mann-Whitney U-test, Spearman rank correlation coefficent (rs) were used for statistical analyses. Results: Activities of daily living were influenced by temporomandibular joint pain/ discomfort to varying degrees. The degree of pain/ discomfort during eating was correlated with the level of C-telopeptide crosslaps of type I collagen (p = 0.02) and type 1 collagen telopeptide fragments (p = 0.04). The females in the study had significantly lower vitamin D levels compared to males (p = 0.04). Conclusions: This population based study indicates that TMJ pain/discomfort exerts a significant negative influence on activities of daily living and is related to the biochemical markers of bone turnover and 25(OH)D level. Several functions of daily activities such as social life, exercising and eating are the most disturbed.