Sleep and Pain: Can’t We Pick Just One?

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Dr. Steven D. Bender shows how sleep and pain interactions need screening, referral, and management to provide treatment and a better lifestyle for patients.

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Sleep and pain interactionsby Steven D. Bender, DDS 

The relationship between pain and sleep has been extensively studied but continues to remain ambiguous. It is widely accepted that poor sleep often precedes pain disorders, including temporomandibular disorders (TMDs)1 and that pain disorders can negatively impact sleep quality. It is therefore essential for dental teams involved in the clinical management of orofacial pains and dental sleep medicine to understand and recognize the frequent comorbidity of these two entities. Dental teams need also to understand the importance of working closely with physicians and when appropriate, comfortably refer patients to the appropriate provider in sleep medicine for further evaluation of any suspected sleep disorder. The aim of this article is to provide a brief overview of the current understanding of pain and sleep interactions in hopes that the dental team will be better prepared to confidently address these when encountered in practice.

Epidemiology of Sleep Disorders in Chronic Pain Patients

Sleep and pain both serve vital functions necessary for human survival. Dysregulation of either has the capacity to affect the other and ultimately interfere with optimum health. Approximately 10-25% of adults will experience some form of chronic pain defined as persistent or recurrent pain lasting ≥ 3 months.2,3,4 Recent data suggests that 50-90% of people with chronic pain also report poor sleep, specifically insomnia, prolonged sleep latency, poor sleep efficiency, and frequent awakenings after sleep onset.5-7

Clinical Findings

While various theories have been proposed as to the directionality of the relationship between sleep and pain, more recent longitudinal studies have shown that poor sleep tends to be more predictive of the onset of various pain disorders such as headaches,8,9 fibromyalgia,10 and musculoskeletal pains11 as opposed to pain conditions leading to poor sleep. The Orofacial Pain Prospective Evaluation and Risk Assessment (OPPERA) study found that patients often experience a period of poor sleep months before the onset of new TMD related pains, independent from other variables.1

Nonrestorative sleep is defined as an unrefreshed feeling on awakening and is experienced in approximately 10% of the general population, particularly in older individuals. Patients with chronic pain conditions such as TMDs commonly report poor or unrefreshing sleep as indicated by frequent awakenings throughout the night, daytime drowsiness, issues with restless leg syndrome, and sleep-related breathing disorders (SRBDs). For some individuals, the restoration of a restful sleep (sleep that makes them feel refreshed and energized) has been associated with the resolution of chronic widespread pain.12

36% of patients with TMDs meet the criteria for insomnia.13,14 Insomnia may be suspected when sleep onset is longer than 20 to 30 minutes, and occurs three to five times a week, or if spontaneous awakening is present during the night without the ability to resume sleeping.15,16 It is estimated that approximately 10% of the general population suffers from chronic insomnia. However, the prevalence is reported to be approximately 30% in chronic pain patients.17

Factors such as lifestyle, beliefs, difficulties in coping with anxiety, poor physical fitness, and chronic fatigue can be considered risk factors for insomnia. Orofacial pain patients tend to report more problems in coping with fatigue, psychologic distress, headaches, abdominal pains, and sleep disturbances.14,18-20

Screening, Referral, and Management Considerations

As it is estimated that 5.9 million U.S. adults have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) with up to 80% remaining undiagnosed, it is the responsibility of the dental team that participates in the care of orofacial pain patients to screen for any suspected sleep disorders that if present, could hinder treatment outcomes in the pain patient. Conversely, it is also critical for the dental sleep medicine practice to meticulously screen for the presence of TMDs or other orofacial pains that may interfere with the initiation of care of the patient with a sleep related breathing disorder. 21 Additionally, when indicated, the appropriate referral should be made for further evaluation, diagnosis, and any necessary therapies that may fall outside the scope of a dental practice. Management strategies for sleep disorders and orofacial pains will vary depending on the diagnosis and should be patient centered and individualized accordingly.

Management Considerations: Oral Appliances

Oral appliances may be utilized for both TMDs and SRBDs. While positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy is currently considered the gold standard treatment for SRBDs, oral devices designed to hold the mandible in a protruded position in relation to the maxilla during sleep, known as mandibular advancement devices (MADs), may also be offered as a first line of treatment for a large number of patients, especially with mild to moderate severity.22 MADs have been shown to provide comparable benefit in terms of quality of life, cognitive and functional outcomes as compared to PAP, and appear to have greater treatment compliance.23 Also, there is data to suggest that MADs may reduce the rhythmic masticatory muscle activity (RMMA) associated with some forms of sleep bruxism (SB).24-27 However, most of these studies are short term in duration (approximately 2 weeks). It should be noted that a recent scoping review found that in instrument-based studies utilizing electromyography and polysomnography, there was no significant correlation found between SB and TMDs.28 It should also be mentioned that while SRBDs may play a role in some SB manifestations, recent reviews have concluded that to date, there is insufficient evidence to support a conclusive cause and effect relationship between the two.29,30

Treatment strategies depend on the diagnosis and should be patient centered.

Other types of oral appliances have long been utilized to help manage various TMD complaints. While many hypotheses have been reported, there is currently no significant data to support any specific mechanism of action for these devices in their role as therapy for TMDs. Importantly, some reports have suggested that devices fabricated for the maxillary arch may increase the severity of OSA in some patients.31-33 The mechanism for this adverse response is currently not known.

Management Considerations: Pharmacotherapy

The goals of pharmacotherapy in orofacial pain and sleep disturbances will vary depending on the specific diagnosis and individual patient characteristics but will have the common objective of reducing pain and improving sleep. Mild analgesics are commonly used alone or in combination with muscle relaxants or other sedating agents to help manage some orofacial pain conditions. Benzodiazepines, which act on gamma amino butyric acid (GABA)-A receptors in the CNS, tend to shorten sleep latency and increase sleep duration in most individuals. They are anxiolytic and sedating and have demonstrated positive outcomes in chronic TMD pain34,35 and in patients with SB.36 However, benzodiazepines will tend to decrease REM stage sleep.37 Cyclobenzaprine, used commonly in the management of musculoskeletal pains, is frequently used in the management of muscle related TMDs. It has been shown to be beneficial in reducing morning TMD related pain as well as improving subjective sleep quality.38 Duloxetine, a selective serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of widespread pain/fibromyalgia. While there appears to be an increase in deeper stages of sleep with duloxetine, REM stage sleep is often suppressed.39 Other medications, such as tricyclic antidepressants (e.g., amitriptyline) have mild to moderate positive effects on both pain and sleep. The positive effects of amitriptyline have been documented for the management of some orofacial neuropathic pains40 as well as chronic tension-type headache.41 Gabapentin and pregabalin, which appear to work at the voltage sensitive calcium channels, also appear to improve pain and sleep quality and continuity.42 The use of opioids in the management of chronic pain is still common despite the potential for tolerance and substance use disorders, as well as the development of opioid induced hyperalgesia. In addition, the risk of respiratory depression associated with opioid use is of significant concern, particularly in patients with SRBDs.

While it has been traditionally believed that some psychotropic medications may induce or worsen both awake bruxism and SB, a recent review found that there is insufficient evidence to draw any such conclusions.43

Conclusions

Sleep is a vital physiologic activity that normally occupies approximately ⅓ of an individual’s life. There appears to be a bidirectional relationship between pain and sleep. Sleep disturbances and sleep disorders can lead to pain disorders and can negatively impact pain management therapy, and acute and chronic pain conditions can disturb sleep. Dental teams should be acutely aware that many patients presenting with orofacial pains frequently suffer with sleep disorders. When sleep disorders are suspected in the orofacial pain patient, the team should understand their role in screening and how to make the most appropriate referrals for accurate diagnosis and comprehensive care. In addition, the dental sleep medicine team should be acutely aware of the impact of any existing orofacial pains, including TMDs may have on their ability to successfully manage SRBDs.

Ben-Pat Institute has a continuing education course that informs clinicians about sleep and pain interactions. Read more about it here: https://dentalsleeppractice.com/there-is-an-interrelationship-between-pain-and-sleep/

Sleep and pain interactionsSteven D. Bender, DDS, is a Clinical Associate Professor at Texas A&M School of Dentistry in Dallas, Texas, and serves as the director of the Clinical Center for Facial Pain and Sleep Medicine, Texas A&M Health, Dallas, Texas. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orofacial Pain and has earned Fellowships in the American Academy of Orofacial Pain, the American Headache Society, the International Academy of Oral Oncology, and the American College of Dentists. He earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from Baylor College of Dentistry in Dallas, Texas, in 1986 and practiced general and restorative dentistry in Plano, Texas, for 12 years. From 1998-2000, he studied orofacial pain and temporomandibular disorders at the Parker E. Mahan Facial Pain Center at the University of Florida College of Dentistry, Gainesville, Florida. From 2000-2015, Dr. Bender maintained a private practice limited to orofacial pain and sleep disorders before becoming a full-time faculty member at the School of Dentistry in 2016. He is a past president of the American Academy of Orofacial Pain as well as the Fourth District Dental Society of Texas and the Dallas Academy of General Dentistry. Dr. Bender has authored and coauthored numerous articles and book chapters and has lectured locally, nationally, and internationally on the topics of headache, TMD, facial pains, pharmacology, anatomy, and sleep topics. Dr. Bender regularly mentors post graduate students during their research projects and dissertation preparation at the School of Dentistry.

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