The Epidemiology of Bruxism in Relation to Psychological Factors

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to establish the prevalence of sleep/awake bruxism among young students in Transylvania and to correlate the presence of this muscle activity with behavioral variations. This analytical, observational, cohort, cross-sectional, and prospective study involved 308 volunteers aged between 19 and 30 years of different nationalities, all students of the “Iuliu Hațieganu” University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Subjects were asked to complete an anonymous questionnaire which was structured in five sections. The results obtained from the questionnaires were analyzed separately for sleep bruxism and for awake bruxism. We did not find any statistically significant correlation between awake bruxism or sleep bruxism and age (p = 0.30 and p = 0.37, respectively), sex (p = 0.44 and p = 0.48, respectively), or nationality (p = 0.55 and p = 0.67, respectively). Only a high degree of stress and frustration (p = 0.035 and p = 0.020) was observed in European subjects except for the Romanians and the French, likely related to the difficulties of adapting to the language and lifestyle in Romania. Female sex was statistically significantly associated with an increased level of stress (p = 0.004), duty-related depression (p = 0.006), and duty-related anxiety (p = 0.003). Stress and anxiety can be favorable factors in the appearance of both types of bruxism; however, depression is associated only with awake bruxism.