Temporomandibular dysfunction in 1,516 patients before and after orthognathic surgery

Functional disturbances, together with esthetic considerations, are important reasons for patients to seek orthognathic surgical treatment. Functional disorders may include signs and symptoms of temporomandibular disorders (TMD), such as joint pain, chewing problems, joint noises, headaches, etc. This paper reports on TMD before and after orthognathic surgery in 1,516 patients. It is based upon the patients' own evaluations as recorded 2 years after surgery. Preoperatively 43% and postoperatively 28% of the patients reported subjective symptoms of TMD. This difference indicates an overall beneficial effect of orthognathic surgery on TMD signs and symptoms. Patients with mandibular retrognathia did not improve as much as patients with mandibular prognathia. Sagittal ramus osteotomy was less effective than vertical ramus osteotomy in relieving TMD symptoms when performed on similar diagnoses.