Orofacial Pain of Non-Dental Origin

ABSTRACT

The general but also the specialized dentist is everyday assessing patients with orofacial pain in their office. The first, but at the same time the most important step in managing these patients, is setting the proper diagnosis. This may include several and various pathologies. The most common etiology of orofacial pain is dental pathology . At the same time, pain from musculoskeletal origin (known as Temporomandibular Disorders-TMD) but even more scarce causes like neuropathic pain are always considered in the differential diagnosis. Moreover, some of these pathologies may co-exist at the same time complicating the patients’ complaints significantly. The International Classification of Orofacial Pain – ICOP that was recently published, describes in details these entities with specific diagnostic criteria.
The aim of this webminar is to describe the clinical signs and symptoms that may indicate the presence of comorbidity or a more scarce cause of orofacial pain. This will, first of all, help the clinician avoid unnecessary (invasive) treatments but also consider further referral to dental or medical specialists in order to assess and manage the patient appropriately.