CONDYLE POSITION IN THE TEMPOROMANDIBULAR-JOINT - COMPARISON BETWEEN ASYMPTOMATIC VOLUNTEERS WITH NORMAL DISK POSITION AND PATIENTS WITH DISK DISPLACEMENT

Though the significance of condyle-fossa relationship in the temporoma ndibular joint has not yet been clarified and normal condyle position not yet defined, efforts have been made to guide the mandibular condyl e into a centric position in the glenoid fossa with the aim of relievi ng the symptoms in patients with orofacial pain and temporomandibular joint internal derangement. The present study investigated the mandibu lar condyle position in 34 joints in asymptomatic volunteers with norm al disk position as verified by arthrography and compared it with the mandibular condyle position in 85 joints in patients with different st ages of internal derangement. The results showed that in the volunteer s with normal joints including normal superior disk position, the cond yles were almost randomly distributed in anterior, centric, and poster ior positions in the glenoid fossa. Of the joints with anterior disk d isplacement approximately half of the number of joints with reducing d isks and two thirds of the joints with nonreducing disks appeared to h ave posterior condyle position. Posterior condyle position cannot, how ever, be used to diagnose internal derangement because the condyle was found to be either in anterior or centric position in many joints wit h a displaced disk. The variety in condyle position in the healthy joi nts ought to be taken into consideration if treatment is chosen to nor malize the mandibular condyle position by bringing it into a centric p osition in the glenoid fossa.