Volume 25 - Issue 4

Sometimes it is interesting and perhaps insightful to step back and relook at our history, appreciate our present, and develop some thoughts regarding our future. Here is one person's perspective of just that.
Considerations of Our Past
In 1934, an otolaryngologist by the name of James Costen brought dentistry into the field of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) with a very mechanistic view that loss of vertical dimension could create pain
in the masticatory structures. Since ...

As I walked into Radio Shack this past weekend, I was amused. I wondered what percent of their sales was actually from radios. Taking a quick look around, I realized that very little of their current product has anything to do with radios. Times change and technology does not stand still.
So it is with print journals. Many print journals now have online services. The trend is apparent to anyone in the business. Younger subscribers ...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of changing mandibular position on body posture and reciprocally, body posture on mandibular position. Forty-five (45) asymptomatic subjects (24 males and 21 females, ages 21-53 years, mean age 30.7 years) were included in this study and randomly assigned to one of two groups, based on the table of random numbers. The only difference between group I and group II was the sequence of the ...

The purpose of this study was to clarify the presence of pain and a correlation between pain and characteristics of signal intensity of mandibular bone marrow in temporomandibular joints (TMJ) with osteoarthritis (OA). A total of 196 joints in 98 patients with TMJ disorders were examined using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). A pain score and signal intensity on mandibular bone marrow were analyzed in the TMJ with OA. TMJ with OA showed a higher degree ...

The purpose of this study was to compare the electromyographic (EMG) activity of the anterior temporal and suprahyoid muscles using habitual methods to determine the clinical rest position. The sample included 26 healthy subjects with natural dentition, bilateral molar support, and bilateral molar Angle Class I occlusion. Bipolar surface electrodes were located on the right anterior temporal and suprahyoid muscles for EMG recordings. In each subject EMG activity was recorded while standing while performing the ...

As the mandible assumes its resting position in space, antagonistic muscles should assume their resting lengths as is demonstrated by resting and isometric electromyography. This zone of mandibular rest can be mapped using these physiologic parameters of muscle activity. Three positions were evaluated: a maximum physiologic open position, a maximum physiologic closed position, and a physiologic rest position. Additionally, each subject’s maximum intercuspation position was evaluated. Within the physiologic zone of rest, formed by ...

There are many temporomandibular joint (TMJ) conditions that can cause pain, TMJ and jaw dysfunction, and disability. The most common of these conditions include: 1. articular disk dislocation; 2. reactive arthritis; 3. adolescent internal condylar resorption; 4. condylar hyperplasia; 5. osteochondroma or osteoma; and 6. end-stage TMJ pathology. These conditions are often associated with dentofacial deformities, malocclusion, TMJ pain, headaches, myofascial pain, TMJ and jaw functional impairment, ear symptoms, etc. Patients with these conditions may ...

Based on its anatomical relationships, the lateral pterygoid muscle is strongly linked with the temporomandibular joint (TMJ). It plays a major role in mastication. Embryological, histological, and anatomical knowledge define the lateral pterygoid muscle as a single muscle with a penniform structure. The various results of electromyographic (EMG) studies describe a complex physiology with a chronological contraction of the layers during the masticatory cycle. The sequential contraction of the layers of the lateral pterygoid muscle ...

Retromandibular approach was first described in 1967 for vertical subcondylar osteotomy and later became popular for surgical treatment of temporomandibular joint dysfunction and low condyle fractures. The trajectory of the incision, parallel to the posterior border of the mandibular ramus, allows a good approach with easy separation of the buccal and marginal mandibular branches of the facial nerve, when they are present in the surgical field. When open reduction and internal rigid fixation with plates ...