Temporomandibular Disorders: Symptoms and Facial Pain in Orchestra Musicians in Finland

Authors

  • Jaana Heikkilä MMus, Cand Odont
  • Leena Hamberg PhD
  • Jukka H. Meurman MD, PhD, Dr Odont

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.47513/mmd.v4i3.315

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) and the symptoms and facial pain of professional symphony orchestra musicians. Results of questionnaires from musicians in Sinfonia Lahti and in The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (n 1⁄4 73) showed that facial pain was common among orchestral musicians (30% of the musicians). The overall prevalence of the symptoms did not vary between the instrumentalist groups but indicated that the musicians playing different instruments had mixed susceptibilities to symptoms. In particular, night bruxism and sleep disturbances seemed to increase the number of symptoms of TMDs in wind players, whereas among string players sleep disturbances increased the occurrence of the symptoms. We conclude that unpleasant facial symptoms were prevalent in many of the professional musicians studied and, as such, may deserve attention as part of an occupational focus on health and wellness.

Author Biographies

Jaana Heikkilä, MMus, Cand Odont

Jaana Heikkilä, MMus, Cand Odont, is a professional violinist in Sinfonia Lahti, and she also studies dentistry at the University of Helsinki.

Leena Hamberg, PhD

Leena Hamberg, PhD, is a researcher at the Finnish Forest Research Institute and a statistics student at the University of Helsinki.

Jukka H. Meurman, MD, PhD, Dr Odont

Jukka H. Meurman, MD, PhD, Dr Odont, is a professor of oral infec- tious diseases and head physician at the Institute of Dentistry, Univer- sity of Helsinki, and the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Diseases, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Helsinki, Finland.

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Issue

Vol. 4 No. 3 (2012)

Section

Full Length Articles