Variation of skin surface temperature over the masseter muscles in patients with myofascial pain following occlusal splint treatment.

The skin surface temperature (SST) over the masseter muscles was measured in 19 patients suffering from myofascial pain (MP) and 20 controls who had no history of any craniomandibular disorder. Seven measurements with intervals of 2 weeks were carried out. MP patients received an occlusal stabilization appliance during their second visit as their only treatment. Clinical symptoms, including muscle sensitivity to palpation, jaw movement and general feeling were evaluated at each visit and compared to baseline. The results indicated that SST in the control group remained almost unchanged throughout the study. In the MP group, the mean temperature decreased during the study after initial treatment. Accordingly, there was a probability of 88.5% that the occlusal appliance treatment in the MP group would cause a decrease of SST over the masseter muscle. A significant relationship between clinical improvement and a decrease of SST was found in the MP group. Temperature recordings with certain limitations could be an objective assessory tool in diagnosis and follow-up of patients with myofascial pain.