Managing TMD patients: initial therapy is the key.

It has been the intention of this brief paper to help dentists respond quickly and effectively to patients with TMD. (In lieu of a detailed bibliography, a brief list of articles and books that deal with diagnosis and therapy for TMD follows.) Several present actual guidelines for practice, while others discuss concepts in greater detail. Knowing how to help these troubled patients by using contemporary basic principles of pain management should make every practicing dentist feel a well-deserved sense of fulfillment.