• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.265-274
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• 2006

Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) internal derangement, especially disc displacement with reduction (DDwR) is the most common TMJ arthropathy and has been thought to do some effects on masticatory performance. Measuring of maximal bite force has been widely used as objective and quantitative method of evaluating masticatory performance, but previous studies showed various results due to various characteristics of subjects and different measuring devices and techniques. In a few studies about the correlation of bite force and temporomandibular disorders (TMD), some authors reported that bite force and masticatory performance would be reduced in patients with TMD because of pain. But the correlation of changes in structure of articular disc and masticatory performance has not been well investigated yet. In this study, to investigate the influences of non-painful disc change on the masticatory performance, we measured the value of maximal bite force, occlusal contact area and occlusal pressure of 39 patients with non-painful DDwR of the TMJ using pressure sensitive film, and compared it with that of 59 controls. The results are summarized as follows: 1. The maximal bite force (P<0.01) and the occlusal contact area (P < 0.05) of the DDwR patients were greater than the controls. 2. There was no significant difference in occlusal pressure between the DDwR patients and the controls (P > 0.05). 3. The maximal bite force of the male group was greater than that of the female group (P < 0.05). However, the occlusal contact area and the occlusal pressure between the male and the female group didn't show significant difference (P > 0.05). From the results above, we can suggest that DDwR could be a factor of changing bite force, but more controlled, large scaled and EMG related further study is needed.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.238-242
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• 2000

Recurrent mandibular dislocation is frequent morbidity of temporomandibular joint relatively. There are many etiologic causes in TMJ disorders but, difficult to find obvious one. Various treatment methods have been utilized for a mandibular dislocation. It is categorized into two groups broadly - nonsurgical or surgical methods. The basic rationale of the surgical method is to allow free movement of the condyle by reducing height of articular eminence or to limit anterior excessive movement of the condyle by increasing height of articular eminence or soft tissue anchoring procedure. In this case, 69 year-old woman was treated by augmentation of the articular eminence with mandibular symphysial bone graft leading to osteosynthesis without difficulty. As a result, favorable postoperative outcome was obtained functionally without any complication or recurrence.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.211-218
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• 2007

The purpose of this study was to compare the maximum bite forces between pre- and post-treatment related to specific diagnostic groups of TMD including masticatory muscle disorder (MMD), disc derangement (DD), joint inflammation (JI) and osteoarthritis (OA). Bite force between pre- and post-treatment was compared in 36 patients with unilateral TMD, successfully-managed in the Department of Oral Medicine, Dankook University Dental Hospital, for this study. The ratio of men to women was 7:29 and their mean age of $28.1{\pm}13.7$ years. The patients were categorized, through clinical and radiographic examination, into aforementioned 4 groups; MMD (N=18), DD (N=6), JI (N=5) and OA (N=7). The maximum bite force measurements were done at the antagonizing canines and 1st molars using a bite force recorder. Paired t-test, ANOVA, Multiple Comparison t-tests were used for statistical analysis. The results of this study showed that the maximum bite force before treatment increased after TMD treatment, which was noticeable at the canines (p=0.001 and p=0.000 for the affected and unaffected sides, respectively). In comparison related to the diagnostic groups of TMD, patients with osteoarthritis of TMJ exhibited the lowest strength while those with inflammatory disorder of TMJ had the highest strength on the affected sides. Increase of bite force after treatment was also found in each group. Significant difference between pre- and post-treatment was found at canines on the affected sides in MMD (p=0.045) and DD groups (p=0.009) while on the unaffected sides in OA group (p=0.003). Conclusively, the reduced bite force due to TMD could be recovered by conservative TMD treatment and that the difference of bite forces between pre- and post-treatment was noticeable at the canines.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.71-79
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• 2011

Aim: Disc displacement without reduction of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) has been managed by mandibular manipulation to reduce the displaced disc but with a low success rate. The purpose of this study was to determine whether auriculotemporal nerve block anesthesia had an effect on the reduction of the displaced disc and to analyze the factors that influenced the result. Methods: 112 patients were diagnosed with disc displacement without reduction and treated by mandibular manipulation. Disc was recaptured in 35 patients. Among the 77 patients with whom disc recapture had failed, the auriculotemporal nerve was blocked with a local anesthetic in the 49 patients (mean $age \;{\pm}\; SD\; =\; 34.4\;{\pm}\; 15.1$; male 24, female 25) and then mandibular manipulation was performed again. Factors including age, elapsed time from the onset, and opening amount were analyzed in association with disc reduction rate with the auriculotemporal nerve block. Results: Among 49 patients who did not respond to manipulation only, manual reduction with auriculotemporal nerve block anesthesia was successful in 19 patients (38.8%). Maximum unassisted opening amount significantly increased in the 19 patients with successful recapture of the disc ($mean \;{\pm}\; SD\; =\; 46.1 \;{\pm}\; 4.5\; mm$), in contrast to the limited opening amount of the 49 patients before local anesthesia of the auriculotemporal nerve ($mean \;{\pm}\; SD\; =\; 25.7 \;{\pm}\; 6.0\; mm$). Age, elapsed time after the onset, and preoperative opening amount were not associated with the reduction rate. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that auriculotemporal nerve block anesthesia increases the reduction rate of the disc displacement without reduction of the TMJ when combined with mandibular manipulation, and such anesthesia should be applied at the first stage of manual treatment of disc displacement without reduction.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.355-364
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• 2006

Headache is a common disease which influences not only individually but also socially. Temporomandibular disorders(TMD) refers to pain and dysfunction within the temporomandibular joint(TMJ) and associated muscles. TMD is presented commonly, and 70% of population are found to have one or more related symptom. A number of studies have been conducted to verify the association between headache and TMD, and some authors have proposed that headache and TMD may be related. In this study, we studied the patterns of headache presented by the patients who visited the TMJ and Orofacial pain clinic. Among the patients participated in this study, tension type headache showed the highest prevalence(48.5%), followed by migraine without aura(15.0%), probable migraine(10.6%), migraine with aura(7.1%), probable tension type headache(4.8%), and other primary headaches(1.8%). The high prevalence of tension type headache may be due to the accompaniment of orofacial pain by pericranial muscle tenderness. Comparison of sex showed that the rate of migraine was higher in female than male(female to male ratio 35.8:25.3). In age analysis, the rate of migraine was high in the twenties(42.2%) and the thirties(40.0%). As the age increased, the rate of migraine decreased, and this trend was in accordance with the previous studies. The percentage of the patients who had previously received treatment was only 26.2%, and that of those who were aware of the diagnosis was merely 8.7%. Therefore, it is not common for headache patients to get treatment, however, since orofacial pain is often accompanied by headache, more systematic diagnosis as well as precise treatment would be necessary. Moreover, since TMD could induce and aggravate headache, proper evaluation and management of TMD would be essential for diagnosis and treatment of headache. In the future, more systematic and broad investigation on the influence of causative factors of TMD on headache as well as the change in headache pattern with the treatment of TMD would be required.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.135-147
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• 2010

In this study, the objective masticatory efficiency of two groups of temporomandibular disorder patients, pain and sound groups, was compared with that in a normal group using the MAI (mixing ability Index). The subjective chewing ability was evaluated using questionnaires, such as the Food Intake Ability Index (FIA) and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP)-49K of the patients was also examined to measure the oral health-related quality of life. The results were as follows: 1. The MAI, FIA and VAS in the pain group were significantly lower than in the normal and sound groups. This shows that the chewing efficiency of the pain group was lower than the normal and sound groups (P<0.05). However, there was no significant difference between the sound and normal groups. 2. The OHIP-49K for the oral health-related quality of life showed a significant increase in both the pain and sound groups compared with normal group. This means that the oral health-related quality of life was lower in both the pain and sound groups. 3. There was a correlation between the MAI, FIA and VAS (P<0.01) in all subjects (71 persons). The OHIP-49K was associated with the FIA and VAS. 4. There was a correlation between the FIA and VAS (P<0.05) in the sound group but no correlation in the other groups. 5. There was a correlation between the FIA and VAS in all groups. 6. The VAS was increased significantly in the pain group according to the level of pain reduction after treatment (P<0.05). However, there was no significant increase in the MAI, even though there was an improvement in masticatory efficiency. In addition, there was no difference in the FIA and OHIP-49K according to the level of pain reduction after treatment. In this study, it is believed that pain is a main factor decreasing the masticatory efficiency in patients with temporomandibular disorders. Moreover, TMJ sounds decrease the quality of life but do not decrease the masticatory efficiency. Therefore, it is important to control the pain in order to improve the masticatory efficiency in temporomandibular disorder patients. Moreover, managing both pain and sound can improve the quality of life.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.413-419
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• 2007

The aims of this study were to investigate the relationships among several types of thermal pain thresholds, and pressure pain thresholds. This study was designed to examine whether there were associations among different types of pain thresholds, and among different recording sites for each pain threshold measurement. Pain sensitivity thresholds including cold pain threshold (CPT), heat pain threshold (HPT), heat pain tolerance threshold (PTT), and pressure pain threshold (PPT) of 56 subjects with symptoms of temporomandibular disorders were measured on temporal muscle, masseter muscle, TMJ, and tibial areas. Thermal pain thresholds including CPT, HPT, and PTT did not show any gender differences. However, women showed significantly lower PPTs than men on all recording sites. Three thermal pain thresholds including CPT, HPT, and PTT showed weak to high correlations on all the recording sites (r= 0.324 to 0.754, p<0.05). PPTs did not show any significant correlations between each thermal pain threshold. The pain threshold of each recording site showed weak to high correlations in all pain threshold measures (r= 0.284 to 0.878, p<0.05). Our study demonstrated that thermal pain thresholds, and pain tolerance thresholds were significantly correlated, but did not show any correlation between thermal pain thresholds and pressure pain thresholds. There were relatively high correlations among the pain thresholds of different recording sites.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.317-324
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• 2009

This study aimed to assess stiffness and elasticity of the masticatory muscle in the patients with the masticatory muscle pain using a tactile sensor and to investigate whether the masticatory muscle pain affects the facial expression muscles. From those who visited Department of Oral Medicine in Dankook University Dental Hospital, 27 patients presenting with unilateral muscle pain and tenderness in the masseter muscle (Ms) were selected (mean age: $36.4{\pm}13.8$ years). Exclusion criterion was those who also had temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders or any neurological pain. Muscle stiffness and elasticity for the muscles of mastication and facial expression was investigated with the tactile sensor (Venustron, Axiom Co., JAPAN) and the muscles measured were the Ms, anterior temporal muscle (Ta), frontalis (Fr), inferior orbicularis oculi (Ooci), zygomaticus major (Zm), superior and inferior orbicularis oris (Oors, Oori) and mentalis (Mn). t-tests was used to compare side difference in muscle stiffness and elasticity. Side differences were also compared between diagnostic groups (local muscle soreness (LMS) vs myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) and between acute (< 6M) and chronic ($\geq$ 6M) groups. This study showed that Ms and Zm at affected side exhibited significantly increased stiffness and decreased elasticity as compared to the unaffected side.(p<0.05) There was no significant difference between local muscle soreness and myofascial pain syndrome groups and between acute and chronic groups. The results of this study suggests that masticatory muscle pain in Ms can affect muscle stiffness and elasticity not only for Ms but also for Zm, the facial expression muscle.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.441-447
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• 2007

Internal derangement of the temporomandibular joint(TMJ) is defined as an abnormal relationship of the articular disc to the condyle. Mandibular manipulation is one of the conservative treatments to be considered first to manage the patients with anterior disc displacement without reduction. Mandibular manipulation is used to increase articular mobility and to restore the displaced disc into an anatomically normal position. While Farrar's technique has been popularly used, Minagi et al., Mongini and Suarez introduced the manipulation technique conducted by the patients themselves. But there is no study on the efficacy of self-manipulation technique, comparing with conventional one. The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of the conventional and self-manipulation technique, which was modified to complement the previously described technique by Minagi et al., in the treatment of patients with anterior disc displacement without reduction. TMD patients, who visited Department of Oral Medicine of Seoul National University Dental Hospital from December, 2002 to November, 2004 and were diagnosed as anterior disc displacement without reduction by TMJ magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were enrolled. Conservative treatments including physical therapy, exercise, behavioral therapy, stabilization splint therapy, and manipulation therapy were done to every single patient until the symptomsimproved enough to discharge the patient. The charts were reviewed retrospectively according to the type of manipulation. In the results, patients whose maximum mouth opening was more than 40 mm was higher in the self-manipulation group(69.9%) than in the conventional manipulation group(42.9%). But difference between two groups was not significant. According to the fact that we decided to discharge the patients whentheir mouth opening increased to more than 40 mm and subjective symptoms such as pain and discomfort were improved as well, treatment period of discharged patients was significantly shorter in the self-manipulation group($29.2{\pm}12.3$ weeks) than in the conventional manipulation group ($61.0{\pm}38.0$ weeks) (p<0.01). In conclusion, in the treatment of TMD patients with anterior disc displacement without reduction, the self-manipulation technique which is performed by patients themselves is an effective treatment modality for increasing the range of mouth opening and shortening the total treatment period.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.275-289
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• 2013

This study was conducted to investigate and analyze the dental patients' awareness and understanding about TMDs. Among the total number of 243 patients who had visited the department of dentistry of Busan Paik Hospital, Inje University or Hanvit dental hospital in Ulsan metropolitan city and participated in the survey, 195 patients who filled in all parts of the questionnaire were selected as the subjects. The results were as follows. 1. The subjects who were aware of the term, "TMDs" were 17.4%. The group with total education period of 12 years and over was significantly more aware of "TMD"(82.4%, p<0.01) than the other group. The subjects who were aware of the term, "jaw joint disease" were 81.0%. 30 to 49 age group(45.6%, p<0.05) and the group with total education period of 12 years and over(60.1%, p<0.01) were significantly more aware of "jaw joint disease" than other groups. 2. More than half of the subjects chose "overuse of the jaws" as the concept of jaw joint disease(50.6%). 3. TV, radio(41.4%) was the most frequent source of awareness about jaw joint disease followed by family and friends(20.2%), hospitals and health professionals(18.2%), internet(15.7%) and newspapers, magazines(4.5%). Among the respondents who were aware of jaw joint disease through TV, radio, 30 to 49 age group showed significantly higher percentage(52.4%, p<0.05) than other age groups. Among the respondents who were aware of jaw joint disease through internet, 18 to 29 age group showed significantly higher percentage(61.3%, p<0.01) than other age groups. Among the respondents who were aware of jaw joint disease from hospitals and health professionals, the group with total education period of 12 years and over showed significantly higher percentage(75.0%, p<0.05) than the other group. 4. Noise during mouth opening and closing(26.9%), mouth opening difficulty(25.1%) and jaw pain(13.7%) were the most frequently responded sign and symptoms of jaw joint disease. For the causes of jaw joint disease, enjoying hard food chewing(19.5%), occlusal discrepancy(19.0%) and chewing with one side only(18.5%) were responded in sequence. TMJ surgery(28%) was the most frequently responded treatment method for jaw joint disease, followed by occlusal appliance therapy(23.9%) and physical therapy(14.6%). For preventive method of jaw joint disease, avoid eating hard food(21.1%), avoid opening mouth wide(17.0%) and simultaneous using of molar of both side when chewing food(15.4%) were chosen frequently.