APPLICATION OF LOGLINEAR MODELING TO INPATIENT DATA FOR TEMPOROMANDIBULAR-JOINT DISORDER CLAIMANTS

The primary purpose of this paper was to demonstrate the application o f loglinear modelling to the analysis of inpatient hospital claims dat a for TMD claimants. The database of a major medical insurer was used to study 1,819 patients who were diagnosed and treated for TMD along w ith their Non-TMD matches. Using loglinear modelling, it was found tha t Major Diagnostic Categories and TMD were not independent variables. Further, three categories were significantly related to patients with TMD: 'Neoplasm' and 'Pregnancy' showed a significant inverse relations hip while 'Digestive System' showed a significant direct relationship. These findings provide healthcare providers with a better understandi ng of TMD and its relationship to disorders that lead to patient hospi talization.