A Comparative Study of Condylar Head Dimensions Effects of Gender, Age, and Side Differences
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.69980/ajpr.v28i5.523Keywords:
condylar head, gender, age, con beam computed tomography.Abstract
Condylar processes of the mandible are the major components of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) with great intersubject variability in size and shape. This study uses cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) to assess the effect of sex, chronological age, and side on the mediolateral dimension and vertical height of the condylar head. A good understanding of condylar head measurements is crucial to the diagnosis and treatment of TMJ disorders because morphometric differences may affect the position of the mandible and its dynamics of functioning. Understanding sex, age, and laterality related roles in these dimensional alterations would allow for reworking of treatment modalities and increased accuracy in presurgical planning, which in turn could result in a better patient outcome.
The study included fifty CBCT scans, with an equal split between each gender (twenty-five males and twenty-five females) aged twenty to forty years obtained from the radiology records at the Specialty Dental Center in Baquba city, Diyala, Iraq. Mediolateral width and vertical height of the condylar head were taken from the coronal CBCT scan slices and the data were categorized by age group; sex; and the lateral side, right or left. Statistical analyses reported independent-samples t-test, one-way ANOVA and Cohen’s d to express effect magnitudes.
There was no significant sex effect on condylar width (p = 0.319 right; p = 0.710 left) or height (p = 0.492 right; p = 0.079 left), as shown by the results. However, age was significantly related to differences in mediolateral width (p = 0.026 right; p = 0.016 left) but not with vertical height (p = 0.888 right; p = 0.216 left). A substantial side-to-side asymmetry was not revealed in boys and girls for width (p = 0.844) and height (p = 0.876) with small effect size (Cohen’s d = 0.0199–0.0433).
In conclusion, gender and side do not significantly influence the dimensions of the condylar head, as far as the measurement of condylar head is concern, whereas age does influences the mediolateral width but not with the vertical height. This information is essential to the knowledge of condylar morphology and the diagnosis and treatment planning of TMJ disorders.
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