The role of michigan oral splint construction aided by OTC drug versus extraction of distoverted maxillary third molars in management of temporomandibular joint disorders: a randomized controlled trial.

The temporomandibular joint disorders (TMD) involve the mastication muscles, the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), and its related structures. To determine the role of Michigan oral splint aided by OTC drug versus removal of distoverted maxillary 3rd molars in the treatment of TMD. The randomized controlled clinical trial study enrolled 280 patients with confirmed TMD who attended different private/public dental centers, from November 2023 to August 2024. Patients had chief complaints of pain and clicking noise/sounds in their TMJ during mouth opening, chewing, muscle tension in the neck/face region, and pain in the head, neck, and pre-auricular/facial areas. Then, patients were randomly assigned to a control group (n = 140) and a study group (n = 140). Patients in the control group (Y1) underwent extraction of distoverted maxillary only, while patients in the study group (Y2) received Michigan oral splint aided by OTC drugs. Then, the Visual Analogue Pain Rating Scale was used to determine the intensity of pain among patients in both groups. Finally, patients were evaluated for treatment outcomes. Most patients were female (67.5%, n = 186) and had a mean age of 38 ± 8 years. Their pain intensity before treatment was 6.47 ± 1.49, and after treatment, it was 0.0 ± 0.0, indicating that the patients were completely healed after using the selected treatment. The results of the normality tests for pain scores before and after treatment showed strong evidence against the null hypothesis (p = 0.000). Additionally, a significant difference (p ≤ 0.05) between both groups suggests that the Michigan occlusal splint, aided by OTC drugs, had a positive effect on healing the patients. Consequently, the occlusal splint has a significant (p = 0.000) behavioural effect on increasing cognition related to mandibular position and function of the stomatognathic system. Michigan occlusal splint aided by OTC drugs was a superior modality than extraction of distoverted maxillary 3rd molars in treatment of TMD.