Cross-sectional study of self-reported pain related to temporomandibular disorders and emotional state of medical school faculty and students: Post-COVID-19 pandemic

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 19; no. 8; p. e0308988
• Main Authors: Galhardo, Alessandra Pucci Mantelli, Andrade, Pâmela Ramos, Andrade, Luciana Paes de, Cury, Mariluce Anache Anbar, Mukai, Marcio Katsuyoshi, Baracat, Edmund Chada, Soares, Jr, José Maria
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 26.08.2024; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Adult; Anxiety; Anxiety - epidemiology; Anxiety - psychology; Biology and Life Sciences; Care and treatment; Complications and side effects; COVID-19; COVID-19 - epidemiology; COVID-19 - psychology; Cross-Sectional Studies; Data collection; Depression - epidemiology; Depression - psychology; Diagnosis; Distance learning; Emotional factors; Emotions; Female; Health aspects; Humans; Jaw; Male; Mastication; Medical schools; Medical students; Medicine and Health Sciences; Mental depression; Pain; Pain - epidemiology; Pain - psychology; Pandemics; Psychological aspects; Questionnaires; SARS-CoV-2 - isolation & purification; School environment; Schools, Medical; Self Report; Signs and symptoms; Social aspects; Social interactions; Social isolation; Social Isolation - psychology; Social Sciences; Statistical analysis; Stress; Stress (Psychology); Students; Students, Medical - psychology; Surveys and Questionnaires; Temporomandibular joint; Temporomandibular joint disorders; Temporomandibular Joint Disorders - epidemiology; Temporomandibular Joint Disorders - psychology; Variables; Young Adult; Brazil
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0308988

The social isolation imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted in-person activities, which were immediately followed by adaptations to ensure, for example, the continuity of teaching. This generated emotional impacts on the academic community. Emotional states may trigger or emphasize conditions such as temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD), causing pain and limiting masticatory function. This study aimed to compare the students and the faculty of a medical school first in terms of the TMD-caused pain they experienced during social isolation and reported two months later, according to their recollections, using the TMD-Pain Screener questionnaire. The second basis for comparison was the emotional state generated by social isolation and its connection with TMD symptoms assessed through the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21), which considers perceptions at the time of data collection. Both questionnaires were responded to in May 2022 after the end of social isolation. The data were analyzed by the IBM-SPSS software for Windows 22.0 with a 5% level of significance. The results show that the self-reported TMD symptoms were more widespread (p = 0.002) and intense (p = 0.013) among students than among faculty and that all of the former's DASS-21 domains (depression, anxiety, and stress) were also more strongly evident (p<0.05). Only anxiety was more significant among the faculty (p = 0.027). Both groups pointed to social isolation as an aggravating factor of the symptoms (p<0.05). The conclusion is that the self-reported TMD-caused pain and all DASS-21 domains as experienced during social isolation were stronger and more prevalent among students than among faculty, and that only anxiety was statistically significant among faculty. Also, the emotional states resulting from social isolation may have aggravated TMD-caused pain in both groups.