Bruxism: a summary of current knowledge on aetiology, assessment and management

Bruxism is a common condition that clinicians come across in both adult and children. Prevalence rates in adults range from 22% to 30% for awake bruxism (AB) and from 8% to 16% for sleep bruxism (SB), while in children they raise up to 40% for SB. Currently, bruxism is considered an ‘umbrella term’ for different jaw muscle activities, occurring during sleep and/or wakefulness. They have a different aetiology, but there is agreement on their central, not peripheral, origin. In otherwise healthy individuals, bruxism can be considered a muscle behaviour, which can be harmless or represent a risk and/or protective factor for clinical consequences, rather than being a disorder per se. Nonetheless, given the merging knowledge on the interaction with several associated factors and concurrent conditions, bruxism should be investigated for being a possible sign of an underlying primary condition. Consequently, treatment should be directed to the management of the possible clinical consequences and/or to the underlying primary conditions. It is generally based on the conservative strategies. The present manuscript summarises the available knowledge on bruxism aetiology, assessment and management for both SB and AB in adults and children, with focus on the future directions to implement the clinical relevance of bruxism researches.

Clinical relevance

A narrative overview summarising such a quickly evolving topic as bruxism may be useful to help clinicians understanding the complex relationship among bruxism, the possible underlying primary conditions, and the possible clinical consequences.