The effect of botulinum toxin injections on bruxism: A systematic review

Objective To systematize evidence on the efficacy of botulinum toxin type A (BTA) in the treatment of bruxism measured through bite force or electromyography (EMG) at the masseter muscle. Method Identification of relevant articles through databases PubMed, Web of Science, SCOPUS, Ovid and EBSCO and manual search were performed for sources from review articles. Studies scoring less than 3 on the Jadad Scale were excluded. Results Four articles were included after an exclusion of 333 articles. 3 articles measured EMG and 1 bite force. 1 article did not record a significant drop of activity, 1 article recorded reduction midway and at final endpoint. 2 articles recorded initial reduction, but a non significant difference at later follow up. Conclusion The available research is inconclusive and does not show enough evidence that bruxism can be treated with BTA injections. However, promising results have been shown in individual studies and further research in this area is needed.