Condylar bony change and self-reported parafunctional habits in prospective orthognathic surgery patients with temporomandibular disorders

Objective. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between self-reported parafunctional habits and condylar bony change and disk displacement in orthognathic surgery patients with signs and symptoms of temporomandibular joint disorders. Study design. This is a cross-sectional retrospective study of pretreatment helical computed tomography scans and questionnaires of 94 female orthognathic surgery patients. Results. Condylar bony change, unilaterally or bilaterally, was found in 56.4% of the subjects, or 43.6% of the joints, Disk displacement, unilaterally or bilaterally, was seen in 59.6% of the subjects, or 45.7% of the joints. Bruxism and clenching was significantly associated with condylar bony change and disk displacement. Subjects with 3 or more parafunctional habits showed a significantly higher rate of bilateral condylar bony change. Conclusion. Our results suggest that bruxism and clenching might be related to deterioration of the temporomandibular joint and that the greater the number of parafunctional habits a subject has, the higher the risk of condylar bony change.