Volume 19 - Issue 4

This study was conducted in order to compare the clinical freeway space measurements using three simple methods commonly used by dentists in their practices. The study was performed in 15 young healthy subjects with natural dentition and bilateral molar support. Artificial landmarks (adhesive tape) were placed on the more prominent parts of the nose and chin of each subject. Vertical dimension of occlusion (VDO) was measured in the intercuspal position. Postural vertical dimension (PVD) was ...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the possible structural variations of axial condyle morphology and horizontal condylar angle between patients with internal derangement and asymptomatic volunteers. Forty-five symptomatic patients and 31 asymptomatic volunteers (AV) were included in this study. All subjects had bilateral high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging scans. Axial condyle morphology was evaluated using these images and classified into four diagnostic groups: convex, flat, and concave anterior surfaces, and tapered form. The angulation ...

…identify and describe one’s feelings, as well as a preference for external oriented thinking. Alexithymia has been linked with various somatic and psychosomatic diseases, especially with chronic pain. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between alexithymia and symptoms of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) as well as oro-lingual and dental pain, in a large representative population sample of young adults. The study was a part of the 31-year follow-up study of the ...

The oropharynx shows rhythmic caliber changes in accordance with the respiratory cycle. Dynamic imaging of the oropharynx is required to evaluate airway changes associated with snoring and obstructive sleep apnea. The purpose of this study was to determine the sites of narrowing/obstruction and to measure the regional collapsibility of the oropharynx during respiration during the sleep and awake cycles in snoring patients. Seven snoring patients were included for this study. Electron Beam Tomograms of ...

Clinical studies have shown a close association between temporomandibular joint hypermobility (TMJH) and temporomandibular disorders (TMD). While pathological change of the lateral pterygoid muscle (LPM) is one of the most emphasized in studies of TMD, there have been no detailed clinical reports of the LPM studies using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in TMJH. This study investigates structural and pathological alterations involving the LPM in patients with TMJH using MRI. A retrospective analysis was made of ...

Migraine and tension-type headaches have always plagued mankind. In spite of all the research dollars spent trying to determine the etiologies of these headaches, the neurology community still has not established a known cause of migraine and tension type headaches. This paper describes a study that was conducted for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in which the efficacy of the Nociceptive Trigeminal Inhibition Tension Suppression System was evaluated and proved safe and efficacious ...

There are few reports analyzing the effects of exercise on patients with temporomandibular disorders. This paper presents a case study examining whether there were additional benefits from performing neuromuscular control home exercises (NMCHE) in a patient with temporomandibular disorder who was already receiving conventional treatment. A woman, 41 years of age, completed a health status questionnaire called the TMJ Scale prior to being accepted. She completed additional TMJ Scales after receiving conventional treatment and again ...

Posterior disk displacement is a rare temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder. The main clinical sign is sudden molar open-bite (jaw locked in the open position). This may be accompanied by a sensation of intra-articular foreign body and more rarely joint pain. Joint sounds are unremarkable. Mouth opening may be slightly impaired. Hypothetically, like anterior disk displacements, posterior disk displacements can be classified as either reducible or nonreducible. A definitive diagnosis requires magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). There ...

Hyperwork of the masseter muscles due to habitual parafunction is thought to induce masseteric hypertrophy (so called work hypertrophy). However, the causes underlying this disease are not yet fully understood. Recently, we had a patient with bilateral masseteric hypertrophy, and we performed a partial excision of the masseter muscles. In this patient’s case, we examined muscular activity, energy metabolism, and fiber type composition of the masseter muscles using electromyograms (EMG), 31P-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS ...