Evaluation of disk position and prevalence of internal derangement, in a sample of the elderly, by gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging.
OBJECTIVE
To assess disk position and the prevalence of disk displacement (DD) in a sample of the elderly by use of contrast agent-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).


METHODS
Thirty subjects (73-75 years old) were drawn from a representative sample and examined clinically. The position and contours of the temporomandibular disk was assessed by using gadolinium-enhanced MR images which were evaluated by 2 independent raters. Statistical assessment was performed by using descriptive statistics and nonparametric tests.


RESULTS
Agreement between raters with respect to disk position was excellent. The MRI showed that 8 subjects (27%; 2 men, 6 women) had DD.


CONCLUSIONS
Gadolinum-enhanced MRI showed that DD is common in the elderly (27%) and that DD occurs more frequently in women than in men. In women without DD the disk is positioned more anteriorly than in men.
Department of Prosthodontics, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany. marc_schmitter@med.uni-heidelberg.de
Marc
M
Schmitter
Peter
P
Rammelsberg
Alexander
A
Hassel
Johannes
J
Schroeder
Viktoria
V
Seneadza
Zibendeh
Z
Balke
Marco
M
Essig
D000368:Aged; D003287:Contrast Media; D005260:Female; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D006801:Humans; D004204:Joint Dislocations / Q000473:pathology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D018579:Patient Selection; D011446:Prospective Studies; D019224:Temporomandibular Joint Disc / Q000473:pathology*; D013705:Temporomandibular Joint Disorders / Q000473:pathology*
D003287:Contrast Media; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA