Clinical trial · Interventional
Study of Etanercept and Celecoxib to Treat Temporomandibular Disorders (Painful Joint Conditions)
The Role of Cytokines as Inflammatory Mediators in Painful Temporomandibular Joints
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
This 2-part study will evaluate the effectiveness and side effects of two anti-inflammatory drugs for relieving pain and improving jaw function in patients with temporomandibular disorder (TMD). Part 1 will evaluate celecoxib (Celebrex); Part 2 will evaluate etanercept (Enbrel). The Food and Drug Administration has approved both of these drugs for treating certain forms of arthritis. Patients between the ages of 18 and 65 years with painful jaw joint conditions may be eligible for this study. Candidates will complete several written questionnaires about their jaw condition and will undergo a medical history, complete TMD evaluation, blood and urine tests, and imaging studies of the temporomandibular joint, such as X-rays and magnetic resonance imaging. Patients will rate the quality and intensity of their pain before beginning treatment. At certain periods during the study, they will also keep a pain diary, twice a day recording the intensity and magnitude of their pain. Part 1 - Celecoxib: Patients will be randomly assigned to receive either 1) celecoxib twice a day by mouth; 2) naproxen (a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug) twice a day by mouth; or 3) a placebo (inactive pill) twice a day by mouth. Part 2 - Etanercept: Patients will be randomly assigned to receive either 1) etanercept injected under the skin or 2) saline (an inactive placebo) injected under the skin. Patients in this group will also undergo two aspirations of fluid from the jaw joint - once before treatment begins and again 6 weeks later. For this procedure, the joint is numbed with an anesthetic and then a needle is inserted into the jaw space to withdraw fluid, which will be analyzed for inflammatory processes in the joint. All patients will have a final evaluation 6 weeks after beginning treatment, including a TMD physical examination, laboratory and X-ray tests as required. The pain diary and questionnaires will be collected at this visit.
Conditions
Conditions (1)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Temporomandibular Joint Disorder | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
Interventions
Interventions (2)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Celecoxib | Drug | Celecoxib | ALIAS |
| Etanercept | Drug | — | UNRESOLVED |
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
Show eligibility criteria text
Celecoxib Study: INCLUSION CRITERIA: Recruitment will include patients with early onset of temporomandibular disorder, whose primary diagnosis consists of anterior disc displacements with reduction as defined by the Research Diagnostic Criteria (RDC). Subjects are required to have preauricular pain for a minimum of one month, a primary TMD diagnosis of TMJ disc displacement, and clinical and radiographic evidence of disc-displacement. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: Subjects who had undergone any TMJ surgery within the preceding 6 months in any active way will be excluded as will those who are taking regularly analgesic, anti-inflammatory, steroids or narcotics medications. Further exclusion criteria will be patients who have any TMJ growth disturbances. Patients with red, hot, swollen, tendered TM joints, or those by medical history consist of infectious arthritis, crystal induced arthropathies, and musculoskeletal disorders will be excluded. Patients will be screened for any positive history of liver or kidney dysfunctions. Patients who have known hypersensitivity to celecoxib, are allergic to sulfonamides, or have demonstrated allergic-type reactions after taking aspirin or other NSAIDs will be excluded. Subjects that have primary psychiatric disease or score above average or higher in comparison with normative scores on Symptom Checklist (SCL-90R) will be able to participate. Subjects with any obvious occlusal disturbances such as cross-bite, open-bite, full dentures will be disqualified. Children under the age of 18 will be excluded from the study. Pregnant women will not be included in the study. Etanercept Study: INCLUSION CRITERIA: For the etanercept study, we will recruitment patients who are in the later stage of temporomandibular disorder, who are not responding to standard non-surgical TMD therapy (i.e., splints, physical therapy, biofeedback, trigger point injections), whose primary diagnosis consists of TMJ osteoarthritis as defined by the Research Diagnostic Criteria. Subjects are required to have preauricular pain for a minimum of three months with clinical and radiographic evidence TMJ arthritis. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: Subjects who had undergone TMJ surgery within the preceding 6 months in any active way will be excluded. Subjects that are taking regularly steroids or narcotics medications will be excluded. Further exclusion criteria will be presence of TMJ growth disturbances. Patients with red, hot, swollen, tendered TM joints, TMJ infections or those with medical history consist of infectious arthritis, crystal induced arthropathies, and musculoskeletal disorders will be disqualified. Patients with sepsis or with known hypersensitivity to etanercept or any of its components will be excluded from the study. Any patients with a medical history of diabetes, congestive heart failure, or any chronic infections will be excluded. Children under the age of 18 will not be included. Pregnant women will not be included.
References
Publications (3)
- BACKGROUNDAllison MC, Howatson AG, Torrance CJ, Lee FD, Russell RI. Gastrointestinal damage associated with the use of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs. N Engl J Med. 1992 Sep 10;327(11):749-54. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199209103271101. PMID 1501650
- BACKGROUNDAltman RD, Lozada CJ. Practice guidelines in the management of osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 1998 May;6 Suppl A:22-4. doi: 10.1016/s1063-4584(98)80007-1. PMID 9743815
- BACKGROUNDArend WP, Dayer JM. Cytokines and cytokine inhibitors or antagonists in rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 1990 Mar;33(3):305-15. doi: 10.1002/art.1780330302. PMID 2180403