Maria Borucka, Wiktoria Kuglarz, Katarzyna Byrtek, Wojciech Kroczek, Edyta Kroczek, Bartosz Wnuk
Jolanta Małysz, Artur Hołodniuk, Kamil Góral, Bartosz Aniśko, Danuta Lietz-Kijak, Idzi Siatkowski, Małgorzata Wójcik – The impact of trigger point therapy and transbuccal massage on symptoms associated with bruxism – preliminary observations – Fizjoterapia Polska 2026; 26(3); 74-83
DOI: https://ddoi.org/10.56984/8ZG7D1AV7A4
Abstract
Aim. This preliminary study aimed to compare the effects of trigger point therapy, transbuccal massage, and their combination on psychological distress (HADS), insomnia severity (ISI), and quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF) in men with awake bruxism and symptoms related to temporomandibular disorders (TMD).
Material and methods. The study involved 98 men (mean age 33.5 ± 12.2 years; BMI 24.6 ± 3.9 kg/m²) with awake bruxism identified through a structured interview and TMD-related symptoms assessed using the RDC/TMD protocol. Participants were allocated to four groups: combined trigger point therapy and transbuccal massage, trigger point therapy alone, transbuccal massage alone, and a control group. WHOQOL-BREF, ISI, and HADS were completed at baseline, after four weeks, and one week post-intervention.
Results. HADS scores differed significantly between groups before therapy (p = 0.0024), after therapy (p = 0.021), and at follow-up (p = 0.032). At baseline, higher—that is, less favorable—HADS scores were recorded in the combined-therapy group (median 15.0) and the trigger point therapy group (17.0) than in the control group (8.5). After four weeks, the medians decreased in the combined-therapy group (to 8.5) and the trigger point therapy group (to 10.0), remained unchanged in the transbuccal massage group (14.0), and were lowest in the control group (5.5). The only significant post hoc difference after therapy and at follow-up was between the transbuccal massage group and the control group, with more favorable (lower) scores in the control group. No significant between-group differences were observed for ISI or WHOQOL-BREF at any time point.
Conclusions. None of the applied interventions proved superior to no intervention. The only significant difference after therapy (p = 0.021) and at follow-up (p = 0.032) was between the transbuccal massage group and the control group, with more favorable (lower) HADS scores in the control group. Descriptively, the largest reductions in median scores occurred in the combined-therapy and trigger point therapy groups, but these groups already differed significantly from the control group at baseline (p = 0.0024), which precludes causal interpretation of these changes. No significant between-group differences in insomnia severity (ISI) or quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF) were found at any time point; however, these results do not exclude an effect of the applied interventions on these outcomes.
Key words
bruxism, temporomandibular disorders, trigger point therapy, transbuccal massage, physiotherapy