Role of depressive illness in the outcome of treatment of temporomandibular joint pain-dysfunction syndrome.

The aim of this study was to assess the role of a depressive illness in the outcome of the treatment of patients with temporomandibular joint pain-dysfunction syndrome. One group was considered psychiatrically normal and the other had a concurrent depressive illness. The latter group was subdivided equally to produce three treatment groups: one undergoing occlusal splint therapy, one receiving antidepressant medication, and the third having a combination of occlusal splint and antidepressant therapy. The results showed clearly that there was a significant difference in response in the nonpsychiatric and combined-therapy depressed groups in comparison with the two depressed groups treated either with occlusal splint or with antidepressant therapy. The combined therapy led to resolution of the painful problem and the depression, whereas the single therapies were only partly successful in relieving the pain-dysfunction syndrome. The preexisting duration of this painful problem did not influence the response to therapy.