The aim of the investigation was to compare the effect on signs and symptoms of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) of two different interocclusal appliances. Thirty patients with signs and symptoms of TMD received either a stabilisation splint or a new kind of splint based on the concept of nociceptive trigeminal inhibition (NTI). A clinical examination was performed and subjective symptoms were registered before start of treatment and after 3 and 6 months. All participants were offered to change to the other type of splint at the 3-month follow-up in case of no improvement or impairment of their symptoms. One subject in each group was lost early during the investigation. The mean time for taking impressions, to make inter-occlusal recording and to adjust the stabilisation splints was 17 minutes. The mean time to fit and adjust the NTI splints was 27 minutes. At the 3-month follow-up, 4 patients that had received NTI splints accepted the offer to change to stabilisation splints due to no improvement or impairment of their symptoms. These treatments were judged as failures. No one in the stabilisation splint group utilised the offer to change treatment. At the 6-month follow-up, 7 of the remaining 10 subjects with NTI splints reported some (n = 1) or significant (n = 6) improvement, 2 reported no change and one reported impairment. All 14 who had been treated with a stabilisation splint reported some (n = 2) or significant (n = 12) improvement. For all variables registered, the results were in favour for the stabilisation splint. One subject treated with a NTI splint exhibited an impaired occlusion at the 6-month follow-up.

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