The Influence of Postoperative Treatment on the Results of TMJ Meniscectomy. Part II: Comparison of Chewing Movement

Abstract:

In order to evaluate the influence of different types of postoperative treatments on the results of TMJ surgery, chewing movement recorded postoperatively was compared in 32 patients with unilateral total meniscectomy, 42 patients with partial meniscectomy with disk repair, and 10 normal subjects. Postoperative treatment was of three different types depending on its strategy. It was found that postoperative treatment had a significant positive effect on the results of both total and partial meniscectomy. Postoperative treatment which included both physical medicine modalities and dental treatment demonstrated better results than only dental treatment or no postoperative treatment. However, none of these studied techniques could recover chewing movement to the normal range.