Abstract
Although the importance of pharmacological intervention as early treatment for temporomandibular joint disorders has recently increased, there have been few reports on close investigation of the efficacy, and no efficacy evaluation criteria have been established. The Japanese Society of Oral Therapeutics and Pharmacology established a committee for the standardization of NSAIDs efficacy evaluation for temporomandibular joint pain, and prepared new ‘NSAIDs efficacy evaluation criteria for temporomandibular joint pain’.These criteria are intended to comprehensively evaluate the effects of drugs based on the course of classification of TMJ dysfunction (Kurita et al.) . In this study, we evaluated the effect of amfenac sodium on temporomandibular joint disorders with pain according to these criteria. The mean active maximal mouth openings with and without pain after 2-week administration were 39.9±7.9 and 35.5±8.0 mm, respectively, showing significant increases from those before administration (p<0.05) . The median VAS of pain (on exertion) after 2-week administration was 22.5 mm, and that of the influence on activities of daily life was 12.0 mm, showing significant decreases from those before administration (p<0.05 each) . Regarding changes in the classification of TMJ dysfunction (Kurita et al.) after administration, the numbers of ‘moderate’ and ‘severe’ cases decreased from 33 to 29 and from 37 to 13, respectively, showing marked reductions. This evaluation method is capable of patient-based evaluation of outcomes, and is suggested to be applicable to patients with temporomandibular joint disorders.
