Quality of life, craniomandibular function, and psychosocial factors related to pain and movement in patients with head and neck cancer.

Purpose: To describe the characteristics of and the associations between health-related quality of life, pain, craniomandibular function, and psychosocial factors related to pain and fear of movement in patients with head and neck cancer.

Methods: Seventy-eight patients diagnosed with HNC were recruited. Measurements of the maximum mouth opening range and pressure pain thresholds on the masseter muscle and the distal phalanx of the thumb were conducted, as well as a battery of self-report questionnaires were administrated, including the QoL Questionnaire (EORT QLQ-H&N35), Numeric Rating Scale (NRS), Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS), the Spanish translation of the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia for Temporomandibular Disorders (TSK-TMD), and the short version of the Craniofacial Pain and Disability Inventory (CF-PDI-11).