Evaluation of the relationship between temporomandibular joint disorders and tinnitus with computed tomography.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to radiographically determine tinnitus and joint disorders by evaluating glenoid fossa depth and the horizontal angle of the ramus mandible in patients with isolated temporomandibular joint disorder and temporomandibular joint disorder with tinnitus by computed tomography (CT).

METHODS

In total, eighty two patients with temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) (forty two patients with tinnitus; forty patients without tinnitus) were evaluated using CT. CT images were analysed according to glenoid fossa depth and the horizontal angle of the ramus.

RESULTS

A total of 82 cases 43 (52.4%) female and 39 (47.6%) male were included. The distribution of gender was not significantly different between the TMD patients and the TMD-tinnitus patients (p >0.05). The mean age of the patients with isolated TMD was 31.70 ± 9.68 years, and the mean age of the patients with TMD-tinnitus was 34.07 ± 11.72 years. Comparisons were made of the right and left glenoid fossa depths of the patients with TMD and TMD-tinnitus, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference between the right glenoid fossa depths (p = 0.016) also there was also a statistically significant difference between the left glenoid fossa depths (p = 0.049).

CONCLUSION

Our study revealed that decreased glenoid fossa depth may be associated with an increased incidence of tinnitus in TMD patients by the way temporomandibular joint and ear can affect each other in diseases such as tinnitus due to their close anatomical relationship.