COVID-19 pandemic and Zagreb earthquakes as stressors in patients with temporomandibular disorders

Ema Vrbanović, Iva Z Alajbeg, Ivan Alajbeg, Ema Vrbanović, Iva Z Alajbeg, Ivan Alajbeg

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate stress effect of COVID-19 pandemic and Zagreb earthquakes on symptoms of temporomandibular disorders (TMD).

Materials and methods: One hundred and two previously diagnosed TMD patients were contacted by email to participate in an online survey about impact of those events on current and/or new symptoms, perceived stress, anxiety and symptom intensity in time-points at the baseline, following pandemic and following earthquake. We compared data between earthquake-affected and non-affected respondents.

Results: Response rate was 79.4%. Effects stress had on deterioration of symptoms were significantly different between earthquake-affected and non-affected (p = .024). In earthquake-affected, numerical pain rating scale (NPRS) scores significantly increased between baseline and after COVID-19 (p > .001) and between baseline and after earthquakes (p > .05). However, scores insignificantly dropped from COVID-19 to after earthquakes time-points. In earthquake-affected, positive correlation was found between impact of COVID-19 on stress and NPRS (p < .001) and between earthquakes' impact on stress and NPRS (p < .001). Earthquake-affected respondents reported significantly more new behavioral habits when compared to non-affected (p = .048).

Conclusions: A series of stressful events do not necessarily have a cumulative effect, but are likely to have a complex interaction (e.g., acute stress might trigger the protective mechanisms), which could have decreased pain scores after the earthquakes.

Keywords: COVID-19; earthquake; pandemic; stress; temporomandibular disorders.

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no potential conflicts of interest.

© 2020 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. All rights reserved.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Changes in Numerical pain rating scale (NPRS) from baseline to three control points. NPRS of all respondents ("pooled data") is marked with dotted red line; NPRS of respondents from the areas affected by the earthquakes (respondents from Zagreb) is marked black; NPRS of respondents from non‐affected areas (non‐Zagreb respondents) is marked gray. Whiskers represent standard errors. Asterisk indicates a post hoc significant difference (within‐group comparisons, compared to baseline); *p < .05, **p < .001

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Source: PubMed

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