Condyle position in the temporomandibular joint: Comparison between asymptomatic volunteers with normal disk position and patients with disk displacement

Abstract

Though the significance of condyle-fossa relationship in the temporomandibular joint has not yet been clarified and normal condyle position not yet defined, efforts have been made to guide the mandibular condyle into a centric position in the glenoid fossa with the aim of relieving the symptoms in patients with orofacial pain and temporomandibular joint internal derangement. The present study investigated the mandibular condyle position in 34 joints in asymptomatic volunteers with normal disk position as verified by arthrography and compared it with the mandibular condyle position in 85 joints in patients with different stages of internal derangement. The results showed that in the volunteers with normal joints including normal superior disk position, the condyles were almost randomly distributed in anterior, centric, and posterior positions in the glenoid fossa. Of the joints with anterior disk displacement approximately half of the number of joints with reducing disks and two thirds of the joints with nonreducing disks appeared to have posterior condyle position. Posterior condyle position cannot, however, be used to diagnose internal derangement because the condyle was found to be either in anterior or centric position in many joints with a displaced disk. The variety in condyle position in the healthy joints ought to be taken into consideration if treatment is chosen to normalize the mandibular condyle position by bringing it into a centric position in the glenoid fossa.