Sleep disturbance as a common pathway in painful temporomandibular disorders and headaches: implications for cardiometabolic risk

Meira e Cruz, Miguel2025-05-122025-05-122025Eur J Pain. 2025 May;29(5):e700241090-3801http://hdl.handle.net/10400.5/100608© 2025 European Pain Federation - EFIC ®The recent study by Exposto et al. (2025), published in the European Journal of Pain, sheds light on the significant prevalence of painful temporomandibular disorders (p-TMD) and their overlap with primary headaches among young adults in Denmark. With 26.4% of participants reporting p-TMD and more than 80% of these also experiencing recurrent headaches, the findings underscore a widespread burden of comorbid pain conditions that merit broader pathophysiological consideration. One underrecognized but central dimension in this context is the role of sleep disturbance as a common and potentially modifiable pathway linking both pain conditions and also a heightened cardiometabolic risk (CMR).engSleep disturbance as a common pathway in painful temporomandibular disorders and headaches: implications for cardiometabolic riskjournal article10.1002/ejp.700241532-2149