Additional Effect of Pain Neuroscience Education to Orofacial and Neck Exercises in Temporomandibular Disorders

A power-point presentation with metaphors and animated videos will be employed. The PNE program will be held in 2 sessions of 30 minutes each. The intervention program will be divided into 17 thematic topics according to Explain Pain.

A protocol of Orofacial Exercises and Manual Therapy will be adopted in the present study. The manual therapy techniques will be: Intraoral temporalis release, Intraoral medial and lateral pterygoid (origin) technique and Intraoral sphenopalatine ganglion technique.

Two mandibular exercises: Mandibular body-condylar cross-pressure chewing technique and Post-isometric relaxation stretches-laterotrusion and opening. Each exercise will be executed 10 times per session for 10 seconds.

A protocol of neck motor control protocol will be adopted in our study. The exercises included bracing exercises (six hierarchical levels) in neurodevelopment stages for the cervical spine. Extremity range of motion exercises will be conducted while maintaining a stable spine at the specific positions. Also, cervical isometric exercises (five hierarchical levels) will be carried out directly forward, obliquely, toward right and left, and directly backward by maintaining a stable spine with elastic resistive bands. Finally, exercises also included functional training with elastic resistance and exercise balls on unstable surfaces (eight hierarchical levels). The criteria to progress in each exercise domain (bracing, isometric exercises or functional training) will be sustain the contraction for 10 seconds, 10 times.