Smartphone application to report awake bruxism Development and testing of the Swedish version and a pilot study to evaluate family history in young adults and their parents

BackgroundTogether with psychosocial and hereditary factors, bruxism is a possible risk factor for orofacial pain. Bruxism is defined as a masticatory muscle activity characterized by repetitive or sustained tooth contact, or by bracing or thrusting of the mandible. A smartphone application to report awake bruxism (AB) has been developed and translated into more than 25 languages. Objective(s)To translate the application into Swedish, adapt it to Swedish culture and conduct a study to evaluate the usability of the application for studies on family history and associated risk factors. MethodsTranslation and cultural adaption of the Swedish version of the application (BruxApp) was carried out in a four-step sequential process. Ten young adults (22-30 years) were recruited together with ten parents (42-67 years) and reported their AB with the application over two seven-day periods. Pain, stress and parafunctional behaviours were assessed by questionnaires. ResultsThe back translation check showed minimal discrepancies between the translation and the English version. Participants did not report any problems with the application. Response rates for both groups were 65%. A difference in frequency of AB was shown between young adults and parents (22.0% vs. 12.5%, p < .001). A positive moderate correlation was found between AB and stress (r = 0.54, p = .017). ConclusionThe use of application strategies enables data collection on AB which can be used in both clinical and research settings. The results suggest that the Swedish version is ready for implementation and for studies on the relationships between AB, family history and psychosocial factors.

Automated summary

A smartphone application for reporting awake bruxism was translated into Swedish and adapted to Swedish culture. The usability of the application for studying family history and associated risk factors was evaluated. The results showed that the Swedish version of the application is ready for implementation and can be used for studying the relationships between bruxism, family history, and psychosocial factors.