Reduction of Chronic Temporomandibular Joint Dislocation by Surgical Traction: Two Cases Report

Abstract

Chronic temporomandibular joint dislocation is defined as an acute dislocation that cannot be reduced or that recurs for more than one month. The management of dislocation depends on patient status and the duration of dislocation and ranges from conservative reduction to a surgical approach. In the present cases, a 64-year-old male was referred to our department for treatment of chronic dislocation for 6 weeks. The dislocation might be occurred by endotracheal intubation. A 70-year-old female was referred to our department with repeat right condyle dislocation after reduction of dislocation at a local clinic. When she visited for later treatment of new dentures, her condyle had been dislocated again for several weeks. In both cases, we tried to treat the dislocation with several manipulations, which were unsuccessful. Finally, chronic dislocation was successfully treated by surgical traction under general anesthesia without relapse. Surgical traction is a simple, effective option with the lowest morbidity of surgical procedures for chronic dislocation when conservative reduction is unsuccessful.