Prevalence of temporomandibular disorder symptoms in a major metropolitan area.

An accurate description of the population prevalence of temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) would be of value to scientists, health-policy makers, and clinicians but, to date, various unreplicated epidemiologic methodologies have produced disparate prevalence figures. We report on a telephone survey that sought to describe the prevalence of six TMD-related symptoms among a random, non-clinic sample from the Kansas City metropolitan area. The prevalence figures for nocturnal bruxism, diurnal clenching, jaw soreness and joint sounds ranged from 10-19%. Some figures were higher than those from St. Louis, but generally the figures accord well with the results of other prevalence studies. Of the 534 people interviewed, 246 reported one or more of the six TMD-related symptoms. Symptoms were not more prevalent among women than men, but were higher among persons of age 45 and under. Pain was reported more commonly by persons with multiple symptoms. The level of concordance between data from Kansas City and St. Louis supports the validity of the telephone survey method for studying TMD prevalence in non-clinic samples.