Aims: To evaluate the risk of self-reported temporomandibular disorder (TMD) pain among adolescents in relation to previous head and/or neck injury. Methods: 3,101 enrollees (11 to 17 years of age) of a nonprofit integrated health-care system were interviewed by telephone. Two hundred four cases with self-reported TMD pain and 194 controls without self-reported TMD pain frequency-matched to the cases by age and gender completed standardized in-person interviews and physical examinations in which reports of previous head/neck injuries were recorded. Odds ratio (OR) estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of the relative risks of TMD pain associated with prior head and/or neck injuries were calculated using logistic regression. Results: A greater proportion of subjects reporting TMD pain (36%) than controls (25%) had a history of head and/or neck injuries (OR = 1.8, 95% CI, 1.1–2.8). In a separate analysis, the presence of TMD based upon the Research Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (RDC/TMD) was assessed in relation to prior head and/or neck injury. Cases reporting TMD pain and meeting the RDC/TMD criteria for myofascial pain and/or arthralgia or arthritis were 2.0 (CI, 1.0–3.8) times more likely to have had a prior head injury than were controls with neither self-reported nor RDC/TMD pain diagnoses. Conclusion: The results suggest a modest association of prior head injuries with both self-reported and clinically diagnosed TMD pain in adolescents. J Orofac Pain 2006;20:191–198

Key words: adolescent, head injury, neck injury, orofacial pain, temporomandibular disorders