A study of temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis using computed tomographic imaging.
BACKGROUND
This study aimed to determine the various bony changes in osteoarthritis (OA) of elderly patients who are suffering from temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMD) and to find if all the changes manifesting in generalized OA were presented in temporomandibular joint (TMJ).


METHODS
Thirty TMJs of fifteen elderly patients who were diagnosed with TMD were selected for the study. Patient with TMD were subjected to computerized tomographic (CT) imaging, and the various bony changes in the TMJ were recorded.


RESULTS
CT study of TMJ showed that there is a positive evidence of joint involvement in 80% of the cases. In this study, female patients were more commonly affected by OA than the males. The condylar changes (69.93%) are more common than the changes in the articular eminence (6.6%) and condylar fossa (10%). About 56.6% of TMJ in the study was affected by the early manifestations of the OA.


CONCLUSIONS
CT study showed that there is a positive evidence of TMJ involvement in the elderly patients with TMD. The results show that condylar changes are more common than the changes in the articular eminence and condylar fossa. The study also shows that most of the patients are affected by early TMJ OA; hence, initiating treatment at early stages may prevent the disease progression.
Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, Ragas Dental College and Hospital, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Electronic address: drravikumar19@gmail.com.
F
F
Massilla Mani
Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, Sri Ramachandra Dental College and Hospital, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
S Satha
SS
Sivasubramanian
D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular / Q000502:physiology*; D013704:Temporomandibular Joint / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods
Computed tomography; Osteoarthritis; Temporomandibular joint; Temporomandibular joint dysfunction