## 2 Materials and Methods  
### Participants  
The study included 50 women aged 20-30 years (23.64 \(\pm\) 2.05) diagnosed with my-ofascal pain in the TMJ area. The participants' body weights ranged from 43 to 76.5 kg (59.26 \(\pm\) 7.88), and their heights ranged from 150 to 180 cm (166.18 \(\pm\) 6.37). The inclusion criteria were as follows: consent to participate in the study, age 20-30 years, absence of pregnancy and miscarriages, nulliparity, and presence of the following symptoms within the temporomandibular joint area: pain modified with jaw movement, function or para-function; pain in the jaw, temple, in the ear, or in front of ear; confirmation of pain location in the temporalis or masseter muscle during the examination; report of pain spreading beyond the site of palpation but within the boundary of the muscle; and report of familiar pain with palpation of the temporalis or masseter muscle. The diagnosis was confirmed by a maxillofacial surgeon in accordance with Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (DC/TMD) [20]. Exclusion criteria were as follows: pregnancy; neurological, systemic, or mental disorders; recent orthopedic procedures; injuries within the last 6 months prior to the study; participation in TMJ therapy within the last 6 months; malocclusion; orthodontic treatment; and presence of implants. In studies on TMJ, it is recognized that patients with injuries occurring within six months prior to the study may present symptoms that could distort the interpretation of results. Therefore, excluding these patients is standard practice in clinical research [21]. Participants were recruited from 22 September to 27 October 2023 before the measurements started. All measurements were finished by 9 November 2023. The study flow diagram is presented in Figure 1.  
The study was conducted in the Functional Diagnostics Laboratory of the Central Scientific Research Laboratory at the University School of Physical Education in Krakow. Figure 1: CONSORT flow diagram. The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki. Ethical approval for the study was obtained from the Bioethics Committee, approval number KBKA/50/O/2023. The project was funded under the Ministry of Science and Higher Education program \"Regional Initiative of Excellence\" for the years 2019-2022, project number 022/RID/2018/19, with a total funding of 11,919,908 PLN. The study was registered on the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry platform (registration ID: ACTRN12623000766617). The study followed the CONSORT guideline for randomized controlled trials. This study was a parallel-group, randomized controlled trial. The eligible participants were randomized in a 1:1 allocation ratio to either the intervention or the control group. Randomization was carried out using a computer-generated random number generator [22] by a member of the research team who did not participate in the patient recruitment process. The first group (n = 25) received a single 15 min session of TMJ soft tissue therapy. The second group (n = 25) served as the control group with no intervention. The researcher who performed the measurements was blinded to the participant group allocation. Before commencing the study, participants were informed about the purpose and procedure of the research and therapy, and they provided written consent to participate in the research project. Each participant completed a custom questionnaire before the study, including questions about age, place of residence, and education, as well as closed-ended questions regarding TMJ dysfunctions, dental malocclusions, orthodontic treatment, and the presence of implants. The questionnaire used allowed for the verification of factors that were established as exclusion criteria for the research project.