Comparison of kinesio taping and occlusal splint in the management of myofascial pain in patients with sleep bruxism.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the efficacy of Kinesio taping (KT) in patients with sleep bruxism (SB) and to determine whether KT may be an alternative for occlusal splint (OS) for the treatment of SB.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixteen patients with SB were treated with KT (kinesio group) and 18 patients were treated with OS (splint group). Masseter and temporal muscle pressure pain thresholds (MPPT and TPPT), visual analogue scale (VAS) values and mouth opening measurements of patients were compared before treatment, and at the 1st and 5th weeks of treatment.

RESULTS: Both KT and OS treatments significantly reduced muscle pain, decreased VAS values, and increased mouth opening measurements. No statistically significant difference was found between the kinesio and splint groups in terms of MPPT, TPPT, VAS and mouth opening values before treatment and at the 1st and 5th weeks of treatment except for TPPT values at 1st week of treatment where the TPPT values of the kinesio group were significantly higher than the splint group (p< 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: KT was identified as an easy-to-use treatment method for bruxism and was found to reduce muscle pain and increase mouth opening. KT is at least as effective as OS for the treatment of SB.