FACIAL PAIN - HOW TO RECOGNIZE, HOW TO TREAT

doi:10.4066/2591-7951-C2-004

FACIAL PAIN - HOW TO RECOGNIZE, HOW TO TREAT

International Conference on DENTISTRY AND ORAL HEALTH & WORLD DERMATOLOGY AND COSMETOLOGY CONGRESS
September 03-04 , 2018 | Bangkok ,Thailand

Ulla Kotiranta

University of Eastern Finland, Finland

Keynote : Arch Gen Intern Med

DOI: 10.4066/2591-7951-C2-004

Abstract:

Temporomandibular disorders (TMD) are common orofacial pain conditions and their diagnoses and management are clinically challenging. TMD patients are treated mainly in primary care. As an attempt to tackle the challenge in serving facial pain patients, the first primary care based facial pain unit was founded in 2003 as part of public dental primary care of Vantaa, Finland. We found that graded chronic pain scale disability scoring can be used as a simple screening instrument in primary health care to identify patients with different, clinically relevant psychosocial profiles. Awareness of these differences may be of help in the planning of individualized treatments. Given that most patients seeking care for facial pain are functional TMD pain patients, the differences in costs between therapies, e.g. conservative TMD treatment using occlusal splint vs. self-care, are important in cost-economical perspective. Regarding dysfunctional TMD patients, neuropathic and other pain patients, developing multidisciplinary collaboration with health care professionals may increase the effectiveness of health care system, decrease the risk for pain chronicity, and save costs. Pain management unit in primary health care could be a useful model to serve facial pain patients. Ongoing, studies of simple treatment methods such as biostimulative laser have shown promising results in facial pain management.

Biography:

Ulla Kotiranta is a long line Dental Clinician in primary care, treating orofacial pain patients from the last 15 years. She worked as a Clinical Lecturer in the University of Eastern Finland and in the University Hospital Kuopio at the Department of Maxillofacial Diseases from the last six years. She is specialist in Prosthodontics and Stomatognathic Physiology and special competence in pain management dealing with several study settings, scientific interest in orofacial pain.

E-mail: ulla.kotiranta@uef.fi

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