Kroniska orofaciala smärtor i allmänpraktiken. Praktisk checklista
Sammanfattning
The focus of this article is to draw together the conclusions
drawn in the associated articles in this series.
It is designed to provide a hands-on check-list
approach to diagnosis of the most common chronic
orofacial pain conditions. The article therefore covers
chronic orofacial pain, risk factors, diagnosis
of the most common musculoskeletal and neuropathic
pain conditions in the orofacial region and
management principles.
In summary, the majority of TMD patients can
be treated by general practitioners. Presence of
several of the known risk factors for development
of chronic orofacial pain, such as comorbid pain
conditions and psychological distress, hamper the
prognosis for obtaining long-lasting pain-relief in
more complicated cases. Often it will be necessary
for the patient to seek concurrent care for the comorbidities
in order to improve the prognosis for
the management of orofacial pain. Importantly,
the longer time the pain has been present, the
poorer the prognosis is for relief, due to the possibility
of a permanently sensitized nociceptive
processing system.