Abstract text (incl. figure legends and references)

Orofacial Pain refers to pain associated with the hard and soft tissues of the head, face, and neck. These tissues, whether skin, blood vessels, teeth, glands or muscles send impulses through the trigeminal nerve to be interpreted as pain by the brain. A vast variety of disorders fall under the umbrella of orofacial pain disorders. There is a bidirectional association between orofacial pain and sleep.

Orofacial pain is a relatively common complaint in general medicine and dental practice. Diagnosis and treatment of pain originating from the head, face, oropharynx, ears, sinonasal area and neck is a complex process compounded by the density of anatomical structures and the prominent psychologic significance attributed to this region. Management of orofacial pain thus demands the service of clinicians from various specializations such as dentistry, otolaryngology, ophthalmology, neurology, neurosurgery, psychiatry and psychology. The quest to better manage pain problems involving the head and neck area has led to the establishment of Orofacial pain as a discipline in the field of dentistry.

Orofacial pain remains a prevalent and debilitating condition with significant social and economic impacts. Clearly the task required is integration of knowledge in this anatomically dense region, traditionally divided between many medical disciplines. Management of orofacial pain requires a professional collaboration between dentists and medical doctors Based on extensive clinical experience with patients suffering from facial pain and headache, an Orofacial pain clinician is well equipped to fulfill this task of giving adequate relief to an orofacial pain patient and improving his/her quality of life.

REFERENCES

OroFacial Pain – Guidelines for Assessment, Diagnosis and Management ,The American Academy of OroFacial Pain - Reny de Leeuw, Gary D. Klasser. Bell"s Oral and Facial Pain - Jeffrey P. Okeson The face of Dental Sleep Medicine in 21st century J Oral Rehab Dec 2020