Dr. Adams' Alabama Headache Blog

Tinnitus is occasionally reported by Temporomandibular Disorder (TMD) patient. In order to assess the presence of tinnitus, the SCL-90 and a list of 30 somatic complaints were used to compare 50 TMD patients with tinnitus (TTs), 50 TMD patients without tinnitus (NTTs) and 50 non patient controls (NPCs) in retroactive study. Records of TTs were selected from 200 patients who had been treated at the Gelb Craniomandibular Orofacial Pain Center. NTTs were randomly selected from the same population and NPCs were chosen from the students, faculty, and staff of the dental school. Mann-Whitney U tests were performed on raw scores of each of the nine dimensions of the SCL-90. TTs were significantly greater than NTTs on all dimensions except Obsessive- Compulsive, Interpersonal Sensitivity, and Hostility and greater than NPCs on all dimensions except Obsessive Compulsive, Interpersonal Sensitivity, Hostility, Phobia, and Paranoia. Scores on the 30 symptom list were available for only 36 tinnitus patients, so 36 were randomly selected from the 50 NTTs. Mann Whitney U showed that TTs as a group reported significantly more symptoms than NTTs. With respect to specific symptoms, only three were significantly greater than NTTs: Pressure in eye, Neck Pain and Difficulty Swallowing. No NTT symptoms were greater in TTs. TMD patients with tinnitus exhibit SCL-90 scores indicating greater emotional stress than TMD patients not reporting this problem. In addition, those with tinnitus generally exhibit a higher frequency of somatic complaints. These findings suggest that TMD patients with tinnitus may require broader treatment including psychological, to help cope with the greater physical and emotional stress.