Comparison of the Bony Changes of Tmj in Patients With and Without Tmd Complaints Using Cbct

Statement of the problem: temporomandibular joint disorders (tmd) may show a poor correlation between their clinical findings and radiological characteristics. purpose: the aim of this study was to assess the osseous alterations of temporoman-dibular joint (tmj) in symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects by employing cone beam computed tomography (cbct) images. materials and method: in this study, cbct images of 120 temporomandibular joints in 30 patients with tmj disorder and 30 age- and sex-matched individuals without tmj complaints were evaluated. osteoarticular derangements of the joint were as-sessed by two experienced examiners. data was statistically analyzed with spss soft-ware using chi-square test (p <0.05). results: out of 120 cbct images (60 in each group), at least one osseous change was observed in 90% and 86.7% joints in symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects, respec-tively. there were no significant differences between symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects regarding frequency of osteoarticular changes including flattening (73.3% vs. 75%), irregularity (36.7% vs. 48.3%), sclerosis (20% vs. 8.3%), cyst (3.3% vs. 3.3%), erosion (13.3% vs. 21.7%), hypoplasia (3.3% vs. 5%), ankylosis (1.7% vs. zero), oste-ophyte (43.3% vs. 40%), decrease joint space (3.3% vs. 3.3%), and increase joint space (5% vs. 5%). (p> 0.05) conclusion: by employing cbct as a modern diagnostic imaging tool, findings of this study revealed that the frequency of various temporomandibular joint alterations on cbct images is comparable in patients with and without tmd complaints, sug-gesting that some people with tmj structural damage may not display clinical manifes-tations. moreover, cbct imaging might not be necessary for tmd patients and more attention should be given to clinical examination.