Efficacy of botulinum toxin in the treatment of bruxism: Systematic review

Abstract

Background: Currently it has been shown that botulinum toxin is effective for a wide variety of medical conditions, and can be applied for therapeutic purposes as cosmetic. In recent years, there has been a growing trend in the use of this drug substance to control the muscular overactivity of bruxism. The objective of this study was the use of botulinum toxin type A (BTX-A) than traditional methods, by conducting a systematic review of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) published in the health sciences literature.

Material and methods: An electronic search was made in the databases of the PubMed, Cochrane Library and Scopus data between March and October 2017, ECA, which will analyze the effect of botulinum toxin in the treatment of bruxism. We included studies of bruxist patients older than 18 years where BTX-A tests were performed on the masseter and / or temporal muscles and the control systems were injections of placebo (saline) or the use of traditional methods for the treatment of bruxism. such as occlusal splints, other medications or cognitive-behavioral therapy.

Results: Of the 68 studies identified, 4 RCTs that fit our inclusion criteria were selected. These studies show that BTX-A injections can reduce the frequency of bruxism episodes, decrease pain levels and maximum occlusal force generated by this pathology, offer superior efficacy in the treatment of bruxism compared to control groups who were treated with placebo or with traditional methods for the treatment of bruxism.

Conclusion: Infiltrations with BTX-A are a safe and effective treatment for patients with bruxism, so its use is justified in daily clinical practice, especially in patients diagnosed with severe bruxism.

Figure 1

Flow chart of the article. Selection process for the systematic review, according to PRISMA guidelines (13).

Figure 2

Risk of bias assessment. According to the Cochrane Hand book for Systematic Reviews of Interventions, version 5.1.0 (15). +: low risk of bias; - : high risk of bias; ?: unclear risk of bias.