Orofacial Evaluation in Women With Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can affect any synovial joint. Unlike the hand, ever so valued in the physical examination of patients with RA, the joints in the area of the jaw and neck may also be affected in this disease and have their involvement usually underdiagnosed. There are few studies evaluating the incidence of orofacial alteration in the examination as well as the correlation between bite force (BF) and clinical and functional parameters in these patients. The aim of our study was to chacacterize the orofacial alterations in RA patients, correlate the results of the orofacial evaluation with clinical and disease activity parameters, and correlate the bite force with the hand strenght.