The primary goal in the treatment of temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) is to ease pain or mandibular dysfunction. The turning point in the treatment of TMJ internal derangement was the introduction of arthrocentesis. Occlusal splints are considered to cause modulation in the mechanical sensory input arising from the periodontium and masticatory system, allowing a reduction in the intra-articular pressure in TMJ. The purpose of the study was to compare the effectiveness of soft and hard splints after arthrocentesis in TMD patients.

A prospective comparative study under ethical committee approval, after a detailed clinical and radiological examination in patients who had TMD, was conducted in the department of oral and maxillofacial surgery. This study included 24 patients randomly allocated into two groups, group 1 (soft splint) and group 2 (hard splint).

Pain, clicking sounds, improvement in the mouth opening, and quality of life variables were evaluated at the baseline, 1-month, and 6-month follow-up. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 25. A p value of < .05 was considered significant for all analyses. All patients of both groups showed improvement. Reduction in pain, soreness of muscles, and quality of sleep improved drastically in patients of group 2.

In conclusion, arthrocentesis followed by a 4-mm hard acrylic splint showed better result when compared to soft splint. Further evaluation of a large population and a longer duration of follow-up is necessary.