Papers of the Week

-To perform a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) Disclusion Time Reduction (DTR) study at five Dental Colleges, using intraoral sensors and muscular electrodes. -One hundred students were randomly assigned to a treatment group to receive the ICAGD coronoplasty, or a control group that received tooth polishing. All subjects answered symptom questionnaires: Beck Depression Inventory-II, Functional Restrictions, and Chronic Pain Symptom and Frequency. Subjects self-reported after ICAGD or placebo at 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months. The Student's t-Test analyzed the measured data. The Mann-Whitney U Test analyzed the subjective data (Alpha = 0.05). -The Disclusion Times, BDI-II scores, and Symptom Scales were similar between groups prior to treatment ( > 0.05). At 1 week, all three measures reduced in the treatment group, continuing to decline over 6 months ( < 0.05), but not for the controls ( > 0.05). Symptom Frequency, Functional Restrictions, and Pain Frequencies were higher in the treated group ( < 0.05), but declined after ICAGD compared to the control group ( < 0.05). -ICAGD reduced Pain, Functional Restrictions, Symptom Frequency, and Emotional Depression within 1 week, which continued for 6 months. The tooth polishing did not initiate a placebo response.