Dental and Skeletal Maturities in Female Adolescent TMJ Osteoarthritis Patients

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the difference between levels of skeletal and dental maturities and their relationships with craniofacial growth patterns in female juvenile patients with temporomandibular joint (TMJ) osteoarthritis (OA).
Methods: A total of 95 female adolescents (11-15 years old) was selected, consisting of 15 subjects (CON) without any sign of temporomandibular disorders (TMDs), 39 TMD subjects (TMDnoOA) without OA, 44 TMD patients (TMJOA) with OA. Dental age was estimated by Demirjian’s stages used in a previous study with Korean adolescents. Craniofacial parameters and the cervical vertebral maturation (CVM) stages representing levels of skeletal maturities were measured on the lateral cephalograms.
Results: The chronological age, distribution of CVM, and the frequency of parafunctional habit responders among groups did not show statistically significant differences. The estimated dental age was significantly lower than chronological age in all groups. Dental age was lowest and the difference between chronological age and dental age was largest in TMJOA followed by TMDnoOA and CON in order, which was not related with CVM stages. Cephalometric parameters revealed significant clockwise rotation of the mandible with retruded chin in TMJOA compared to CON and TMDnoOA, which was not related with CVM stages as well.
Conclusions: These results indicated that retardation of dental development could be seen in female adolescent TMD patients, especially with TMJ OA, as well as mandibular backward positioning and hyperdivergent facial profiles known very well. However, degree of dental developmental retardation and characteristics of craniofacial profile did not seem to be related with skeletal maturities estimated by CVM. The relevance of dental maturities would be greater than that of skeletal maturities to occurrence of TMD and this implies that the effect of TMDs on the growth and morphological change might be possibly limited locally in the craniofacial areas.