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Updated: Jul 14, 2026

Systematic Assessment of Mammalian Skull Specimens for Dental and Temporomandibular Joint Pathology
Published on: August 22, 2022
Anatomy of the temporomandibular joint
X Alomar1, J Medrano, J Cabratosa
1Department of Radiology, Creu Blanca, Barcelona, Spain. xalomar@creu-blanca.es
Abstract:
The temporomandibular joint (TMJ), also known as the mandibular joint, is an ellipsoid variety of the right and left synovial joints forming a bicondylar articulation. The common features of the synovial joints exhibited by this joint include a fibrous capsule, a disk, synovial membrane, fluid, and tough adjacent ligaments. Not only is the mandible a single bone but the cranium is also mechanically a single stable component; therefore, the correct terminology for the joint is the craniomandibular articulation. The term temporomandibular joint is misleading and seems to only refer to one side when referring to joint function. Magnetic resonance imaging has been shown to accurately delineate the structures of the TMJ and is the best technique to correlate and compare the TMJ components such as bone, disk, fluid, capsule, and ligaments with autopsy specimens.
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