A Cochrane review [withdrawn from publication] included 12 studies. The stabilisation splint (also known as the Tanner appliance, the Fox appliance, the Michigan splint or the centric relation appliance) is one treatment option for the pain dysfunction syndrome (PDS), the most common temporomandibular disorder (also called facial arthromyalgia, myofacial pain dysfunction syndrome and craniomandibular dysfunction). In the trials, stabilisation splint (SS) therapy was compared to: acupuncture, bite plates, biofeedback/stress management, visual feedback, relaxation, jaw exercises, non-occluding appliance and minimal/no treatment. There is no evidence of a statistically significant difference on the effectiveness of SS in reducing symptoms in patients with PDS compared with other active treatments. There is weak evidence to suggest that the use of SS for the treatment of PDS may be beneficial for reducing pain severity, at rest and on palpation, when compared to no treatment. A standardisation of the outcomes of the treatment of PDS should be established in the future RCTs.
Comment: The quality of evidence is downgraded by inconsistency (heterogeneity in interventions and outcomes) and by imprecise results (limited study size for each comparison).