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R01_Pilot Jaw Muscle Phenotypes

R01_PilotStudy2_Jaw Muscle Metabolic and Brain-Derived Phenotypes of Chronic TMD Pain

Status
Not yet recruiting
Phases
Unknown
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT07153107
Enrollment
10
Registered
2025-09-03
Start date
2026-10-01
Completion date
2027-01-12
Last updated
2026-09-14

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Chronic TMD Pain, Temporomandibular Disorder

Keywords

Jaw Pain, Local Heat Therapy

Brief summary

The proposed study will assess the effect of local heat therapy on jaw pain and jaw fatigue secondary to a teeth clenching task in chronic TMD pain cases. Researchers expect that most participants will respond to heat therapy and consequently experience reduced jaw pain and fatigue during teeth clenching. The study will assess the clinical characteristics of those participants who respond and do not respond to local heat therapy, in order to determine the common clinical characteristics for those in each response category.

Interventions

OTHERLocal Heat Therapy

This will use a simple device provided to participants named "jaw bra", which is a head wrap with straps that goes around the chin and head that holds heated gel packs over the cheeks area

Sponsors

University of Minnesota
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Outcomes Assessor)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Provide signed and dated informed consent form. * Willing to comply with all study procedures and be available for the duration of study participation. * Be 18 years or older. * Have a minimum set of teeth present, be it natural, implant-supported or fixed prosthodontics: all anterior teeth (incisors, canines), at least one premolar, at least one molar (first or second molar; third molars not considered). * TMD-Pain screener score equal to or greater than 3 * Myalgia (masticatory muscle pain) based on clinical exam following the DC/TMD protocol * Concurrent arthralgia (TMJ pain) and/or headache attributed to TMD allowed * Myofascial pain must meet the following criteria: 1. Onset \>3 months, occurring \>15 days/month on average in the last three months from the screening session 2. Minimum of 10 jaw pain episodes since onset, each episode lasting at least 30 minutes and no less than 2 hours within the day, OR unremitting

Exclusion criteria

* Traumatic facial injury or surgery on the face/jaw, arms or hands; * Presence of pain related to dental and periodontal pathology; * Currently undergoing active orthodontic treatment; * Pregnant; * Has any of the following medical conditions by self-report: 1. Renal failure or dialysis, 2. Heart disease (examples: uncontrolled arrythmia or hypertension, cardiomyopathy) or heart failure, Non-allergic bronchospasm (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and emphysema), 3. Diabetes (type I or II) that is not controlled with medication or diet, 4. Hyperthyroidism, 5. Uncontrolled seizures; * Used any injection therapy (e.g., tender or trigger point injections, steroid injections), acupuncture, biofeedback, or TENS for the management of facial/jaw pain within 2 weeks prior to the screening assessment; If undergoing botulinum toxin injections in the head and neck area, must be 3 months since last set of injections and refrain from this treatment until study participation has ended * History of major depression or other major psychiatric disorder requiring hospitalization within the last 6 months prior to the screening assessment; * History of treatment for drug or alcohol abuse within the last 12 months; * Current pain medication use (e.g., opioids, ibuprofen, acetaminophen) that cannot be stopped \<24 hours prior to each study visit; * Current use of medically prescribed muscle relaxants for the duration of study participation; * Other conditions/diseases associated with altered pain perception: neurological or development disorders (dementia, autism spectrum disorder), neoplasm, multiple sclerosis, trigeminal neuralgia; * Adults lacking capacity to provide informed consent for themselves; * Unable to understand instructions for study procedures in English. * Anything that would place the individual at increased risk or preclude the individual's full compliance with study procedures or completion of the study."

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Proportion of bad jaw pain fluctuations7 days following interventionPrimary outcome includes the proportion of bad jaw pain fluctuations. A bad jaw pain fluctuation is defined as an increase ≥ 20 points from a previous measure. Jaw pain ratings will be collected daily for 8 days. The proportion of pain fluctuations is defined as the number of bad jaw pain fluctuations relative to the total number of jaw pain ratings.
Patient change in proportion of bad jaw pain fluctuations7 days following interventionPatient change in proportion of bad pain fluctuations will be assessed by comparing the proportion of bad jaw pain fluctuations between patients receiving heat therapy and matched patients not receiving heat therapy during the wait period.

Countries

United States

Contacts

CONTACTLauren Huffman
huffm052@umn.edu612-625-8926
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOREstephan Moana-Filho

University of Minnesota

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Sep 15, 2026