Temporomandibular joint segmentation in MRI images using deep learning

Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) internal derangements (ID) represent the most prevalent temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) in the population and its diagnosis typically relies on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). TMJ articular discs in MRIs usually suffer from low resolution and contrast, and it is difficult to identify them. In this study, we applied two convolutional neural networks (CNN) to delineate mandibular condyle, articular eminence, and TMJ disc in MRI images.

The models were trained on MRI images from 100 patients and validated on images from 40 patients using 2D slices and 3D volume as input, respectively. Data augmentation and five-fold cross-validation scheme were applied to further regularize the models. The accuracy of the models was then compared with four raters having different expertise in reading TMJ-MRI images to evaluate the performance of the models.

Both models performed well in segmenting the three anatomical structures. A Dice coefficient of about 0.7 for the articular disc, more than 0.9 for the mandibular condyle, and Hausdorff distance of about 2mm for the articular eminence were achieved in both models. The models reached near-expert performance for the segmentation of TMJ articular disc and performed close to the expert in the segmentation of mandibular condyle and articular eminence. They also surpassed non-experts in segmenting the three anatomical structures.

This study demonstrated that CNN-based segmentation models can be a reliable tool to assist clinicians identifying key anatomy on TMJ-MRIs. The approach also paves the way for automatic diagnosis of TMD.

Accurately locating the articular disc is the hardest and most crucial step in the interpretation of TMJ-MRIs and consequently in the diagnosis of TMJ-ID. Automated software that assists in locating the articular disc and its surrounding structures would improve the reliability of TMJ-MRI interpretation, save time and assist in reader training. It will also serve as a foundation for additional automated analysis of pathology in TMJ structures to aid in TMD diagnosis.