Nucl Med Mol Imaging.  2009 Apr;43(2):143-149.

Prediction of Splint Therapy Efficacy Using Bone Scan in Patients with Unilateral Temporomandibular Disorder

• Lee SM
• Lee WW
• Yun PY
• Kim YK
• Kim SE

Abstract

PURPOSE: It is not known whether bone scan is useful for the prediction of the prognosis of patients with temporomandibular disorders (TMD). The aim of the present study was to identify useful prognostic markers on bone scan for the pre-therapeutic assessment of patients with unilateral TMD.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Between January 2005 and July 2007, 55 patients (M:F=9:46; mean age, 34.7+/-14.1 y) with unilateral TMD that underwent a pre-therapeutic bone scan were enrolled. Uptake of Tc-99m HDP in each temporomandibular joint (TMJ) was quantitated using a 13X13 pixel-square region-of-interest over TMJ and parietal skull area as background. TMJ uptake ratios and asymmetric indices were calculated. TMD patients were classified as improved or not improved and the bone scan findings associated with each group were investigated.
RESULTS
Forty-six patients were improved, whereas 9 patients were not improved. There was no significant difference between the two groups of patients regarding the TMJ uptake ratio of the involved joint, the TMJ uptake ratio of the non-involved joint, and the asymmetric index (p>0.05). However, in a subgroup analysis, the patients with an increased uptake of Tc-99m HDP at the disease-involved TMJ, by visual assessment, could be easily identified by the asymmetric index; the patients that improved had a higher asymmetric index than the patients that did not improve (1.32+/-0.35 vs. 1.08+/-0.04, p=0.023).
CONCLUSION
The Tc-99m HDP bone scan may help predict the prognosis of patients with unilateral TMD after splint therapy when the TMD-involved joint reveals increased uptake by visual assessment.

Keyword

Bone scan; temporomandibular joint; temporomandibular disorder

MeSH Terms

Humans
Joints
Prognosis
Skull
Splints
Temporomandibular Joint
Temporomandibular Joint Disorders