Volume 18 - Issue 4

The trigeminal nerve is the largest and most complex of twelve cranial nerves. Its vast size and influence are greatly appreciated when one attempts to diagnose and treat patients suffering from orofacial pain and temporomandibular joint disorders. Without a thorough knowledge of the trigeminal nerve, the efficacy of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures will be very disappointing. This is the first of a four-part series of articles about the trigeminal nerve, a basic over-view of both ...

The purpose of this study was to assess the discriminative capacity of the McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ) in patients with temporomandibular joint disorders (TMD) or with facial pain disorder as somatoform disorder (referred to as "atypical facial pain") (FP). The MPQ was administered to 57 TMD and 34 FP patients. Weighted MPQ item scores, subscale Pain Rating Indexes (PRI), and total Pain Rating Index were tested for significant differences (Student's t-test), and the frequency ...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the asymmetry of masticatory muscle activity between working and nonworking sides in the closing phase during mastication. Fifty adult subjects displaying normal oral function and occlusion participated in this study. Electromyographic (EMG) activity of the anterior temporalis and the superficial masseter muscle were recorded during mastication, simultaneously with motion data of the mandible. EMG activities of elevator muscles and their Asymmetry Index (AI) were analyzed depending on ...

The objective of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of temporomandibular joint arthrocentesis in acute and chronic closed lock patients. Eighteen patients with closed lock of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) were treated with fine needle fiber arthroscopic observation following arthrocentesis. Maximal mouth opening (MMO) and intensity of pain (VAS) were evaluated at pretreatment and each posttreatment appointment (one week, one month, three months following treatment). The clinical and arthroscopic findings were analyzed categorizing two ...

The study of articular sounds using a computerized system (SonoPAK) in patients with temporomandibular disorders (TMD) of inflammatory origin revealed an increase of vibratory energy when compared to asymptomatic individuals. The following conclusions were reached: 1. The amount of vibratory energy registered in these patients ranged from 8.50 to 57.61 Hz. The major vibrations occurred in the middle of the mandibular opening cycle; 2. The mean vibratory energy measured at less than 300 ...

It is proposed that damage to the masticatory system from intense parafunction can be assessed more accurately by the Weak Link Theory. The theory predicts that the more intense and the more prolonged the forces, the more the tendency of damage to either: 1. the periodontal tissue; 2. the teeth; or 3. the orofacial structures. To test the theory, 22 subjects were selected based on reports of nocturnal bruxism. Each was assessed for masticatory system ...

A 25 year-old woman was referred to the clinic complaining of pain in the left temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and trismus. According to the x-ray images, a solitary mass was observed in the anterior pouch of the lower joint cavity. The mass was removed by means of a synovectomy and a diskectomy. Upon light microscopic examination, the tissue removed showed high cellular activity. As a differential diagnosis, we had to consider the possibility of chondrosarcoma based ...