Occurrence of Pneumatic Cavities Surrounding the Temporomandibular Joint.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence, the location, and the characteristics of the pneumatic cavities (PCAs) surrounding the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) by using cone-beam computed tomography.

METHODS

A retrospective study was performed by using the three-dimensional data archives from Faculty of Dentistry, Bezmialem University, Istanbul, Turkey. The age and sex had been previously recorded for all of the patients. The location and the morphologic characteristics of the PCAs were documented.

RESULTS

Pneumatic cavities were found in 18 patients (15%): 11 women (61%) and 7 men (39%). Eleven (57.9%) of the patients showed unilocular pneumatic air cells and 8 (42.1%) of them showed multilocular ones. The unilateral-to-bilateral ratio was 2.3:1. The age range was 8 to 76 years (mean 29.5 ± 21.86 years), and the female-to-male ratio was 1.57:1.

CONCLUSION

Cone-beam computed tomography provides images without superimposition that allows accurate and easy evaluation of the PCAs surrounding the TMJ. Our results suggest that the occurrence of PCAs is higher than has been previously reported; therefore, it is recommended for clinicians who are planning to perform TMJ surgery to think about the PCAs to understand the exact morphology for avoiding intraoperative complications.