OBJECTIVE: This case-control study aimed to compare patients with temporomandibular disorders (TMD) and healthy controls in terms of oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) considering Graded Chronic Pain Scale (GCPS) scores, pain duration, psychological impairment and demographic characteristics.
METHODS: A total of 75 patients with TMD and 75 healthy controls were recruited. The short version of Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) was administered for evaluating the OHRQoL. Psychosocial impairments were assessed using the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28). The Research Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (RDC/TMD) axis I and II were also used for patient diagnosis and collecting GCPS scores, pain duration, age and gender. Independent-sample t tests, Pearson\'s chi-square tests and multiple logistic and linear regression models were applied for statistical analysis.
RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 34.3±12.4 years. A female-to-male ratio of 6:1 was seen in the TMD group. The prevalence and severity of the OHIP were significantly different between the TMD and control groups (66.7% vs 12.0% and 18.0 vs 9.2, respectively). According to multiple logistic regression for OHIP prevalence and multiple linear regression for OHIP severity in the TMD group, GCPS scores and pain duration, followed by psychological impairment, were the most important predictors of the OHRQoL.
CONCLUSIONS: TMD negatively affected the OHRQoL, particularly in patients with psychological impairments. Meanwhile, age and gender did not seem to have a serious effect. Hence, promoting the quality of life of patients with TMD requires emphasis on chronic pain management and maintaining good mental health.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the influence of the shaping technique on incidence, intensity, duration and type of postoperative pain (PP).
METHODS: Root canal treatments were carried out with rotary instrumentation (n=80) during a single-visit, and data about pre-treatment conditions were collected. Patients were given a questionnaire to record the presence or absence of post-endodontic pain, its duration and level of discomfort. A matching patient (same pre-treatment conditions but manual instrumentation) was randomly selected from a pool (n = 374) and assigned to the control group. A total of 44 pairs of patients matched completely and were included in the study. Incidence (yes/no) of PP was assessed using Chi-square tests, intensity (mild, moderate, severe) with trend tests and duration (days) with Mann-Whitney U tests.
RESULTS: A significantly greater proportion of the patients in the control group reported pain than did patients in the rotary shaping group (p < 0.05). However, pain duration was shorter (p = 0.008) in the control group. Differences in level of discomfort were not statistically significant.
CONCLUSIONS: The results of this prospective in vivo study suggest that a higher incidence of PP should be expected after manual root canal preparation. However a second major finding of the study is that when present, PP after a rotary canal preparation is expected to last longer.
CONCLUSIONS: There has been an increase in the use of rotary techniques among dentists in recent years. The present study analyses the differences in the incidence and characteristics of postoperative pain that should be expected after rotary canal preparation compared to traditional manual methods that had not been reported yet.