The role of nutraceuticals in the management of temporomandibular disorders
Di Giacomo P, et al.
Published in Journal of Complementary and Integrative Medicine
Methodology
Randomised controlled study conducted January 2021 to January 2022 allocating patients with temporomandibular disorders to nutraceutical, no treatment, nutraceutical plus occlusal splint, or splint alone; a nightly tablet of Boswellia serrata Casperome, magnesium, tryptophan and vitamins B2 and D for 40 days; outcomes of temporomandibular pain, headache, neck pain and sleep/emotional disorders assessed at baseline and day 40 using ANOVA and chi-squared.
Key Findings
This randomised study ran from January 2021 to January 2022 in people with temporomandibular disorders and a verbal numeric pain score above 40. Participants were allocated either to a nutraceutical or no-treatment group if awaiting therapy, or to nutraceutical plus splint or splint alone if already using an occlusal splint. The supplement combined Boswellia serrata (Casperome), magnesium, tryptophan and vitamins B2 and D, taken as one tablet each night for 40 days. Groups taking the supplement showed statistically significant improvements over their controls on most measures of temporomandibular pain, headache, neck pain and sleep or emotional disturbance.
Conclusions
A combination nutraceutical (Boswellia serrata, magnesium, tryptophan, vitamins B2 and D) improved most TMD outcomes over controls in the short term, alone or with splint therapy; individual ingredient contributions cannot be isolated.
Limitations
The abstract reports no sample size, no effect sizes and no confidence intervals, only that results were significant; there was no placebo control (comparison was against no treatment or splint alone), so expectation effects cannot be separated, and the multi-ingredient formula makes it impossible to tell which component, if any, was responsible.
Related Health Concerns
Study Details
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