Impact of reassurance on pain perception in patients with primary burning mouth syndrome

<jats:sec><jats:title>Objectives</jats:title><jats:p>In spite of extensive research, no effective treatment of primary burning mouth syndrome (<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BMS</jats:styled-content>) still exists. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of informative intervention/reassurance on pain perception and quality of life in patients with primary <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BMS</jats:styled-content>.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Materials and Methods</jats:title><jats:p>Informative intervention/reassurance was undertaken in 28 patients diagnosed with primary <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BMS</jats:styled-content>. Patients received information about all aspects of <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BMS</jats:styled-content> verbally and in an informative leaflet. Numerical scale (0–10), Pain Catastrophizing Scale and Oral Health Impact Profile‐14 (<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">OHIP</jats:styled-content>‐14) were used to assess pain intensity, pain perception, and quality of life before the intervention and 6 months after. No other treatment was given to the patients.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results</jats:title><jats:p>Significant reduction in symptom intensity, pain catastrophizing along with positive increase in the quality of life compared with baseline, was observed on a follow‐up examination 6 months after the informative intervention (<jats:italic>P</jats:italic> < 0.001).</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusions</jats:title><jats:p>The results of this study confirm that objective informing/reassurance of patients with primary <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BMS</jats:styled-content> can result in decreased catastrophizing and improvement in the quality of life. By eliminating/changing negative patterns of behavior, a reduction in symptoms comparable with pharmacological treatment can be achieved.</jats:p></jats:sec>