Clinical tests in distinguishing between persons with or without craniomandibular or cervical spinal pain complaints

The recognition of a craniomandibular or cervical spinal pain is usually based upon the pain complaint of the patient, reported during an oral history, and the pain responses provoked in a clinical examination. Often used clinical tests are palpation, and function tests like dynamic/static tests or active movements. The relative importance of these tests for the recognition of the musculoskeletal pain is important. Therefore, it was the aim of the present study to determine which test, or combination of tests, best discriminates between persons with or without craniomandibular and/or cervical spinal pain complaints. Two hundred and fifty persons participated. From each person, a standardized oral history was taken. Then, in a randomized order and using a blind design, physical examinations of the craniomandibular system and of the neck were performed. Forward stepwise logistic regression analyses showed that the dynamic/static tests discriminated better between persons with and without pain complaints than the other tests did. In conclusion, in studies to the coexistence of craniomandibular and cervical spinal pain, it may be a good choice to base the recognition of these disorders on the pain complaints reported in the oral history which are verified by the pain response of the dynamic/static tests.