Volume 27 - Issue 1

The term temporomandibular disorder (TMD) has gained wide acceptance and popularity and is often used as if it were a diagnosis. Conversely, it is a collective term embracing a number of clinical problems that involve the masticatory musculature, the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) , and its associated structures or both. Furthermore, TMD can also come to involve heterotopic symptomatology due to missed diagnosis or misdiagnosis. Because several pathological entities are collected under this umbrella term, adequate diagnosis ...

Alvin Toffler once said, "The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read or write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn." In a world of ever changing theory and confirmed advancements dealing with orofacial pain, this is especially true. There are now over 50 accepted theories of learning with many diverse approaches being employed by faculty in a single institution or department of that institution, so learning is a ...

For a century and a half, Tourette’s syndrome (TS) has been a mystery to the medical profession with physicians believing that it was a psychological disorder, then a neurological brain disorder, and then, an infectious disease caused by streptococcus. What was never considered was that this disorder called Tourette’s was due to a structural deformity which would manifest itself as a neurological problem. What has been discovered is that Tourette’s syndrome is ...

Any division or branch of the trigeminal nerve can exhibit signs and symptoms of neuralgia. Those who treat patients suffering with craniofacial pain are frequently charged with determining the cause of illusive pain complaints and if objective signs are not discovered, the patient may not be treated and may be forced to seek help elsewhere. Trigeminal neuralgia-like pain is often seen in the mental nerve region of the mandible, but frequently, there is no radiographic ...

Condylar hyperplasia is a rare disorder characterized by an increased volume of the condyle, ramus, and mandibular body leading to facial asymmetry. We present three cases of condylar hyperplasia: two women and one man, age range 27 to 34. Clinically, all three patients showed a deviation of the mandible to the opposite side and a protruded position of the chin, hypertrophy of the lower border of the mandible, combined with an elongation of the mandibular ...

Hallermann-Streiff syndrome (HSS) is a rare congenital disorder characterized by significant craniofacial findings. Dyscephaly, microphthalmia, cataracts, hypotrichosis, cutaneous atrophy, thin pinched nose, and a typical bird-like face are the main features of the syndrome. Additional features of the syndrome include dental anomalies, micrognathia, skeletal defects, and short stature. What follows is a  case report of a 10-year-old girl with HSS with special consideration on orodental findings. Clinical, radiographic, and cephalometric analysis revealed hypoplasia of the ...

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the development of masseter muscle activity at mandibular rest position is characteristic for different angle classifications. The sample consisted of 64 boys and 108 girls, aged ten to 18. Electromyographic (EMG) activity from the right and left masseter muscles was recorded using an EMG scanner. First or second order polynomials were used to separately model the age-related changes in resting muscle activity of each gender and ...

Trigger point injections with different solutions have been studied mainly with regard to the management of myofascial pain (MFP) patient management. However, few studies have analyzed their effect in a chronic headache population with associated MFP. The purpose of this study was to assess if trigger point injections using botulinum toxin, lidocaine, and dry-needling injections for the management of local pain and associated headache management. Forty-five (45) myofascial pain patients with headaches that could be ...

Although different occlusal appliances with various designs have been described in the literature, little is known about their influence on condylar position. The purpose of the present study was to compare the effect of two occlusal appliances (pivot appliance, stabilization appliance) on condylar position with respect to normal and maximum clenching force. Electronic-positioning-analysis was performed in 22 healthy volunteers with an ultrasound-based registration system. After randomized insertion of the appliances, the volunteers were asked to ...

The aims of this study were to analyze the criterion and construct validity of Part II of the protocol for multi-professional centers for the determination of signs and symptoms of temporomandibular disorders (ProTMDMulti) as a measure of TMD severity. The study was conducted on eight asymptomatic subjects (CG) and 30 subjects with articular TMD (TMDG), according to the Research Diagnostic Criteria for TMD (RDC/TMD). The ProTMDMulti-Part II was validated using the Helkimo Clinical Dysfunction ...