Association Between Temporomandibular Disorders Pain and Migraine: Results of the Health 2000 Survey

Aims: To study the possible associations of various clinically assessed painful signs of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) with the presence of migraine using a large population-based dataset. Methods: The data were taken from the nationally representative Health 2000 Survey (BRIF8901). The sample consisted of 5,876 adults (age range 30 to 97 years, mean ± standard deviation 52.5 ± 14.8), 5,378 nonmigraineurs and 498 migraineurs. The study participants answered questions concerning migraine presence, migraine frequency, and migraine medication consumption during a home interview. They also underwent a clinical TMD examination. Results: Based on the multivariate regression models, painful muscular TMD, but not joint-related TMD, was associated with the presence of migraine (odds ratio [OR] = 1.58; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.23 to 2.04; P .01). Migraine with TMD was associated with increased migraine frequency (daily or a few attacks within a week) (OR = 1.93; 95% CI = 1.27 to 2.93; P .01) and higher migraine medication consumption (OR = 2.37; 95% CI = 1.43 to 3.92; P .01). Conclusion: According to the results of this study, muscle-related TMD pain is associated with the presence of migraine. Additionally, migraine along with painful TMD signs is associated with increased migraine frequency and migraine medication consumption. Keywords: headache medication, migraine, pain, temporomandibular disorders