Background and Aims: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease. Oral manifestations in these patients include paralysis or spasm of facial muscles, temporomandibular joint disorders (TMJ), trigeminal neuralgia, dysphagia, or dysarthria. The aim of the study was to investigate the characteristics of orofacial pain in patients with MS.
Materials and Methods: The current cross-sectional study was conducted on 250 patients with a definite diagnosis of MS referred to Iran MS Association and Iran MS Research Center. The patients were in the age group of 17 to 57 years and were selected completely randomly. Data were obtained based on two checklists and clinical examination. Finally, DC/TMD criterion was used to check TMD problems. Then the data was analyzed by SPSS version 26 software and by Fisher's Test.
Results: The prevalence of MS disease was higher in women and the average age of patients was 37 years and the average duration of MS disease among patients was 8 years. The most common pain was related to shooting and shock-like pain with a frequency of 40.4% and the lowest quality was related to dull and diffuse pain with a frequency of 5.3%. In total, 24.5% of patients with buccal-oral pain had TMD, and in this case, the DC/TMD criterion was used.
Conclusion: Temporomandibular disorders and shooting and shock-like pains are usually observed in a number of patients with MS. As a result, dentists should be aware of the presence of these pains in the patient, the pain trigger, and the drugs used by the patients, in order to provide medical services and being aware of drug interactions.
