CLINICAL RESEARCH POSTER PRESENTATION ABSTRACTS
Please note: All posters will be displayed in
Salons 10-12.
FRIDAY, 5:45-6:30 PM
Calabrese C, Ritenbaugh C, Sutherland E, Lommen E,
Mist S, Aickin M.
Naturopathic Medicine for Temporomandibular Dysfunction:
A Phase II Whole System RCT.
Helgott Research Institute - National College
of Naturopathic Medicine ccalabrese@ncnm.edu
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate
whole system naturopathic medicine (NM) as a potential treatment for
women with temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD) pain and other health
problems.
METHODS: One hundred sixty volunteering women,
ages 25-55 years and members of Kaiser Permanente Northwest health plans,
who presented to the Kaiser TMD clinic in Portland OR were randomized
to one of three arms: specialty dental care (SDC, n=60), NM (n=45),
or traditional Chinese medicine (TCM, n=50). This is an analysis of
the outcomes of NM compared to SDC. SDC included visits to a TMD dentist
who used an individualized prescription wherein possible treatments
included bite splint, education, massage, pharmacotherapy and specialty
referrals. Naturopathic care was delivered by 2 state-licensed naturopathic
physicians in the community. The naturopathic protocol was 9 visits
over 6 - 8 months with more frequent visits at the beginning. Assessment
and individualized treatment were provided at each visit. Naturopathic
treatment included many practices for which NDs are licensed in Oregon,
including nutritional prescription, botanicals and dietary supplements,
stress management techniques, manipulation and certain drugs. Outcomes
by self-report included 10 point pain scales for facial and headache
usual pain and worst pain and functional impact of TMD pain with data
collected at baseline, end of treatment and 3 and 6 months after treatment.
RESULTS: Patients improved over time in both
NM and SDC. Both groups also maintained improvement after treatment.
All pain outcomes, both adjusted and unadjusted, and functional impact
of pain showed greater benefit with NM at both the end of treatment
and 3 months later. Worst Headache Pain at end of treatment was significantly
better in the naturopathic medicine group (NM minus SC, -1.025 + 0.257,
p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: Patients on NM treatment did better
during treatment and maintained improvement better than SDC after treatment.
This study provides support for further research to definitively determine
whether the trends shown here are clinically significant in larger samples.
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