Comparative prospective study on splint therapy of anterior disc displacement without reduction

summary A prospective randomized study was carried out to compare the therapeutic success of two different types of splint in patients with painful anterior disc displacement of the temporomandibular joint. The patients in Group I ( n = 20) received stabilization splint therapy and the patients in Group II ( n = 20) pivot splint therapy. Clinical investigation of the craniomandibular system was performed before and 1, 2 and 3 months after therapy and this was accompanied by subjective evaluation by the patients of their symptoms, using a validated questionnaire with visual analogue scales (VAS). There was a significant increase in maximum jaw opening and a significant reduction in subjective pain in both groups during the course of therapy (Wilcoxon test, P < 0·05). Active jaw opening increased by a mean of 8·05 mm in the group of patients treated with a stabilization splint (Group I). The comparable figure with pivot splint therapy (Group II) was 8·26 mm. The VAS scale value in Group I was reduced by 30·54 units and in Group II by 39·36 scale units. However, neither of these differences between the groups was statistically significant ( Mann–Whitney U ‐test, P > 0·05). It can be concluded that both types of splint provided effective therapy in patients with anterior disc displacement.