Effectiveness of Manual Therapy in Treating Myofascial Pain Related to Temporomandibular Dysfunction: Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

To evaluate the effectiveness of manual therapy in the treatment of myofascial pain related to temporomandibular disorders (TMD) through a systematic literature review. A systematic electronic search and manual of controlled and randomized clinical trials was carried out. Included articles were published between the years 2004 and 2021. Search was conducted in the Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, Web of Science, Scopus, LILACS and Scielo databases. Results: were found 145 titles and abstracts in the search, and 10 articles were included. A total of 493 individuals were assessed. 241 received only manual therapy or manual therapy associated with counseling as treatment. The other patients were a control group, patients undergoing other treatment modalities or patients who did not receive any treatment. Manual physical therapy is effective in the treatment of myofascial pain related to TMD. Thus, this treatment modality must be considered as one of the therapies in reducing muscle pain related to TMD.