Correlations between anxiety, depression and pain in French adults with temporomandibular disorders: an exploratory observational study

Background: Chronic temporomandibular disorder (TMD) pain is frequently associated with psychological distress. This exploratory observational study aimed to assess pain intensity, pain-related disability, anxiety, and depression in French adults with painful chronic TMD in relation to sociodemographic factors. Methods: Seventy-five patients with chronic TMD were evaluated using the General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and the Graded Chronic Pain Scale (GCPS). Sociodemographic variables were collected and analyzed as binary factors. Group comparisons were performed using Mann-Whitney U-tests. Associations between anxiety, depression, and pain were examined using Spearman’s rank correlations with 95% confidence intervals. Statistical significance was set at α = 0.05. Results: Severe anxiety was observed in 11% of participants, while 69% reported mild to severe depressive symptoms. High pain-related disability was reported by 22% of women and 25% of men. Strong correlations were identified between anxiety, depression, and pain, particularly among participants over 35 years old, unemployed/retired, or with family charge. Conclusions: Despite the limited sample size, findings suggest that psychological distress and its associations with pain may be influenced by sociodemographic factors in chronic TMD patients.