• R Emshoff and A Rudisch.
• Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Innsbruck. Austria. Maxillofaziale-Chirurgie@uibk.ac.at
• Oral Surg Oral Med O. 2001 Jan 1; 91 (1): 50-5.

ObjectivesResearch is needed to assess the validity of clinical decision criteria for the diagnoses of temporomandibular disorders. The objective of this study was to assess the reliability of clinical diagnoses in predicting magnetic resonance imaging diagnoses of temporomandibular joint internal derangement and osteoarthrosis in a patient pain group with temporomandibular disorders.MethodsOne clinician used the Clinical Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders to classify 163 consecutive patients with temporomandibular disorders on physical diagnosis. The radiologist subsequently performed magnetic resonance imaging on 326 temporomandibular joints. Diagnostic agreement was determined for the diagnostic categories of absence of internal derangement, disk displacement with reduction, disk displacement without reduction, and osteoarthrosis.ResultsUse of the Kappa statistic test indicated a poor diagnostic agreement between the clinician and the radiologist.ConclusionsThe classification system of the Clinical Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders provides insufficient reliability for determination of the presence of temporomandibular joint internal derangement and osteoarthrosis. It should be supplemented by evidence from cross-sectional and longitudinal investigations to assess decisive differences in the areas of pathogenesis, treatment, and prognosis.

26 keywords...

hide…