Characteristics of condylar movements during mastication in stomatognathic dysfunction.

In this investigation of the relationship between mastication and TMJ abnormalities, the movements of the incisal point and condyles during mastication were analyzed in two normal subjects and six patients with unilateral TMJ abnormalities. The path of the nonworking condyle was shorter than that of the working condyle when patients chewed on the side of the normal TMJ, causing the mandible to deviate to the abnormal side at the point of transition from opening to closing. Also, the mobility of the abnormal condyle influenced the convexity of the opening path, and posterior dislocation of the condyle resulted in a crossover chewing pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]