[Methods of registration and the position of the mandible]

Various methods of checkbite may lead to displacement of the condyles by about 0.5 mm. Repetition of the method used two weeks later, may show dispersions comparable to the results of other checkbite methods. The condyles tend to change their position primarily in a vertical direction. Given normal compressive load, this suggests that the ligaments are not extended by the load during positional relation registration. The shift is rather due to compression or distraction of the condyles in the temporor-mandibular joint.