Prevalence of temporomandibular disorders in clear aligner patients using orthodontic intermaxillary elastics assessed with diagnostic criteria for temporomandibular disorders (DC/TMD) axis II evaluation: A cross‐sectional study

Abstract Background The objective of this investigation is to assess the relationship between the utilisation of orthodontic intermaxillary elastics and temporomandibular disorder (TMD) symptoms in clear aligner patients and to examine the correlation between the elastic usage time with the Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (DC/TMD)—Axis II Evaluation Forms. Methods This study was carried out on a total of 40 clear aligner patients using intermaxillary elastics in the experimental group and 30 clear aligner patients who did not use any intermaxillary elastics in the control group. The data were evaluated using the Mann–Whitney U , chi‐square, Fisher's exact chi‐square, and Fisher Freeman Halton exact chi‐square tests. Results The characteristic pain intensity, mastication, mobility, communication, global and PHQ‐9 scores of the experimental group were significantly higher than those of the control group ( p < .05). The characteristic pain intensity score, interference score and chronic pain grade score of patients using Class III elastics were statistically significantly higher than those of patients using Class II elastics ( p < .05). Patients who used elastics for less than 6 months had statistically significantly higher PHQ‐9 scores than those who used elastics for more than 6 months ( p < .05). Conclusions Orthodontic treatment may affect occlusion, bite force and jaw movement, which may cause or worsen TMD symptoms, and the DC/TMD questionnaires can determine if orthodontic patients acquire TMD by assessing their psychosocial state and pain‐related problems.