Psychoemotional determinants of sleep bruxism: A phenotypic characterization using instrumental assessment

Objective: To investigate possible correlations between depression, anxiety and stress in subjects with instrumental diagnosis of sleep bruxism (SB) and to identify a link between clinical data and sleep-time muscular activity. Methods: 170 subjects underwent clinical investigation and instrumental night recordings for SB assessment with a portable electromyographyic (EMG) device. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) were used for psychological evaluation. Results: Anxiety was statistically associated with SB index and SB-related tonic contractions. Subjects with high perceived stress scores showed higher numbers of total masseter contractions and SB-related phasic contractions. Conclusion: Emotional states showed a statistically significant association with SB events, as assessed based on the count of episodes over 10% of the maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) preceded by a 20% increase of heart rate.