The relationship between bruxism, sleep quality, and headaches in schoolchildren

[Purpose] Present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between sleep bruxism and headache in school children. [Subjects and Methods] This study was conducted with 103 children aged 3-6 years. The exclusion criteria were early tooth loss, dental appliance was used, physical or psychological limitations, chronic disease and continuous medication. Sleep bruxism was diagnosed based on an indication by parents of the occurrence of teeth clenching/grinding and incisor/occlusal tooth wear, following the criteria of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Sleep quality was evaluated by a questionnarie, detailing the child's sleep characteristics. [Results] Forty-nine children (47.6%) were diagnosed with sleep bruxism. Those with sleep bruxism were 3.25-fold more likely to present headache. Children whose parents were separated had a significantly greater frequency of sleep bruxism and primary headache. The relative risk of exhibiting primary headache was 13.1 among children with sleep bruxism whose parents were separated. [Conclusion] Children with SB demonstrated a greater risk of having primary headache and those whose parents were separated had a greater chance of having headache. Only sleep bruxism was associated with headache, clenching the teeth during waking hours was not correlated with primary headache.