Improvement in post-orthodontic chronic musculoskeletal pain after local anesthetic injections in the trigeminal area: a case series

Abstract

Orthodontic treatment has been associated with chronic extraoral pain that is often resistant to common treatments such as drugs or physiotherapy, adversely affecting patients’ quality of life. In this case series, we discuss the potential impact of orthodontics on chronic cervical spine pain or gonalgia and explore the long-term effect of local anesthetic injections as a possible therapeutic intervention. Six orthodontic patients with chronic cervical spine pain or gonalgia that substantially affected their quality of life were treated with injections of 0.5% procaine into individual lesions and at palpable points of tissue tension in the oral mucosa and extraoral myofascial areas. All patients in this case series reported significant improvement in their chronic pain, with no residual pain recorded at the 6-month follow-up. Injecting local anesthetic at stress points in the oral mucosal and extraoral myofascial regions may be an effective treatment for post-orthodontic neck and knee pain. Further research is required to better understand the potential benefits of this intervention for patients experiencing orthodontic-related musculoskeletal pain.