Durham, Justin, McDonald, Claire, Hutchinson, Luke et al. · Journal of oral & facial pain and headache · 2015 · DOI
This study found that people with PoTS (a condition causing rapid heart rate when standing) often also have painful jaw disorders (TMD). Nearly half of the patients studied screened positive for TMD, and those with TMD reported that it significantly worsened their quality of life. The researchers suggest that doctors should routinely check for jaw pain in PoTS patients.
This study highlights a potentially underrecognized comorbidity in PoTS that significantly impacts functional status and quality of life. Understanding the relationship between PoTS, TMD, and ME/CFS may help clinicians provide more comprehensive care and improve patient outcomes through targeted screening and intervention.
This study does not establish whether TMD causes PoTS symptoms, results from PoTS, or represents an independent comorbidity. The cross-sectional design cannot determine the temporal relationship or mechanistic link between these conditions. The small sample size and lack of control group limit the ability to generalize findings or rule out selection bias.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Durham, Justin, McDonald, Claire, Hutchinson, Luke, & Newton, Julia L (2015). Painful temporomandibular disorders are common in patients with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome and impact significantly upon quality of life.. Journal of oral & facial pain and headache. https://doi.org/10.11607/ofph.1396
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-durham-2015-painful-temporomandibular,
author = {Durham, Justin and McDonald, Claire and Hutchinson, Luke and Newton, Julia L},
title = {Painful temporomandibular disorders are common in patients with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome and impact significantly upon quality of life.},
journal = {Journal of oral & facial pain and headache},
year = {2015},
doi = {10.11607/ofph.1396},
note = {PubMed: 25905533},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/durham-2015-painful-temporomandibular},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-31. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/durham-2015-painful-temporomandibular
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