Primary headache management in a multidisciplinary team - a pilot study.

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Psychology
• Physical Therapy

Background:

• Tension-type headaches and migraines are linked to cervical and masticatory muscle dysfunction and psychosocial factors.
• Primary headaches and bruxism often coexist, suggesting a potential common etiology.
• Psychosocial issues can influence the experience and severity of primary headaches and bruxism.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the interconnections between primary headaches, bruxism, and psychosocial factors.
• To evaluate the efficacy of a multidisciplinary approach in managing headache and bruxism.
• To compare the effectiveness of manual therapy alone versus a combined manual therapy and counseling approach.

Main Methods:

• Pilot study involving 67 patients diagnosed with primary headache and bruxism.
• Patients were divided into two groups: manual therapy only, and manual therapy plus counseling.
• Intervention duration was three months, with statistical analysis using paired Student's t-tests and McNemar's tests.

Main Results:

• Substantial improvements were observed in various parameters across both groups after three months.
• The combined therapy group demonstrated greater effectiveness compared to the manual therapy alone group.
• While some improvements were statistically significant, others did not reach statistical significance.

Conclusions:

• A multidisciplinary approach combining manual therapy and counseling is more effective for managing primary headaches and bruxism than manual therapy alone.
• The findings support the bidirectional relationship between musculoskeletal dysfunction, psychosocial factors, and primary headache/bruxism disorders.
• Further research with larger sample sizes is warranted to confirm these findings and explore underlying mechanisms.