Although it is commonly accepted that there is an interrelationship between the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and head posture, few, if any, previous studies have quantified this effect. The purpose of this study is to quantify the effect of a change in the condyle fossa relationship of symptomatic temporomandibular joints on head posture. Charts of 51 patients (N=10 men and N=41 women) with symptomatic TMJ pathology were reviewed. The condyle fossa relationships were measured pre- and posttreatment using sagittal corrected hypocycloidal tomography. The amount of slant between the shoulder and external auditory meatus (EAM) was measured in pre- and posttreatment photographs as an indicator of forward head posture; less slant indicates better posture. Subjects ranged in age from 13-74 years (mean=43.1) and had been treated for an average of 5 months. Comparisons with pre-treatment measures showed that after treatment, the amount of retrodiskal space was significantly increased by an average of 1.67 mm on the left side (t=-10.11, p<0.0001) and 1.92 mm on the right (t=-9.62, p<0.0001). Comparisons also showed that after treatment, the amount of slant between the shoulder and EAM decreased by 4.43 inches on average which was also significant (t=13.08, p<0.0001). Improvement in the condyle fossa relationship was related to decreased forward head posture. This suggests that optimizing mandibular condyle position should be considered in the management of forward head posture (adaptive posture).

Patients with temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD) require antero-posterior (AP) correction of mandibular position inter alia. Determination of the limit of the AP correction using a sibilant phoneme registration (SPR) protocol is essential in not increasing muscular tonus. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of a SPR protocol on the upper airway. Using acoustic pharyngometry data, mean airways of 46 adults undergoing treatment for TMD were reconstructed in 3-D and analyzed using finite element analysis and principal components analysis. When the mean baseline functional residual capacity (FRC) airway was compared to the mean collapsed residual volume (RV) airway, a 25% reduction in the 3-D upper airway was demonstrable (p < 0.01). When the mean baseline FRC airway was compared to the mean airway with SPR (FRC-SPR), a 12% increase was found at the oropharyngeal junction of the 3-D airway, but this finding failed to reach statistical difference. Similarly, when the mean FRC-SPR airway was compared to the mean RV-SPR airway, the amount of collapse was reduced to 16% but again no statistical difference was found. In contrast, when the mean RV airway was compared to the mean RV-SPR airway, a 15-18% increase was found (p< 0.05). It is concluded that the use of a SPR protocol may be useful in improving upper airway RV in patients, during treatment for TMD.

It is recommended that patients who seek care for the symptoms of sleep-related breathing disorders (OSA), or patients seeking care for chronic head and face pain be screened with intake forms that include questions of both to insure optimal treatment outcomes for either chief complaint.

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