Painful Temporomandibular Joint Clicking: Genetic Point of View

To determine whether there is an association between gene polymorphisms and patients with painful temporomandibular joint (TMJ) clicking when compared to patients with painless TMJ clicking and a healthy control group.

In this pilot study, the genotypic and allelic frequencies of candidate single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) were compared among 60 individuals divided equally into three groups: patients with painful TMJ clicking (n = 20); patients with painless TMJ clicking (n = 20); and healthy controls (n = 20). Participants were genotyped for the following SNPs using real-time polymerase chain reaction: MMP1 -16071G/2G, COMT Val158Met, TNFα -308, IL1β +3954, IL6 -174, and IL10 -1082. The pressure pain threshold (PPT) of the TMJ was also assessed. All variables were compared among groups.

Patients with painful TMJ clicking had a significant association and a higher frequency of MMP1 -16071G/2G (P = .042), COMT Val158Met (P = .030), and TNFα -308 (P = .016) when compared to the other groups, as well as a lower frequency of IL10 -1082. Considering PPT values, a progressively lower mean was found in individuals with painful TMJ clicking, followed sequentially by the painless TMJ clicking and the control groups.

This pilot study showed that patients with painful TMJ clicking had a significant association with mutant genotypes related to degradation of extracellular matrix components, pain, proinflammation, and anti-inflammation. Furthermore, these patients also had significantly lower TMJ PPT values in all comparisons.