Turkish Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation 2001 , Vol 47 , Num 3

Temporomandibuler Eklem Artroskopisi Sonrası Fizik Tedavinin Etkinliği

Abdullah Cindaş 1 ,Yeşim Gökçe Kutsal 2 ,Metin Önerci 3
1 Celal Bayar Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi, Fiziksel Tıp ve Rehabilitasyon Anabilim Dalı, Manisa
2 Hacettepe Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi, Fiziksel Tıp ve Rehabilitasyon Anabilim Dalı, Ankara, Türkiye
3 Hacettepe Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi, Kulak Burun Boğaz Anabilim Dalı, Ankara

Efficacy of Physical Therapy After Temporomandibular Joint Arthroscopy The aim of this study was to compare the effects of ultrasound and laser on range of motion and pain intensity during exercise therapy in patients who had undergone temporomandibular joint (TMJ) arthroscopy. The study group consisted of  20 postoperative patients who had not responded to the conservative management and had undergone TMJ arthroscopy. Patients were randomly allocated into two groups. Laser was applied to 12 patients and ultrasound was applied to 8 patients. Incisal opening of mouth, laterotusion to the contralateral side, pain with movement and pain with palpation were significantly improved in ultrasound group (p<0.05), but in laser group only incisal opening of mouth and laterotrusion were improved (p<0.05). In comparison of the groups after therapy, improvement in pain with movement and palpation was more significant in ultrasound group (p<0.05). Conclusively, this study shows that  physical therapy and rehabilitation program can be used to provide better outcome in  postoperative treatment in patients with TMJ arthroscopy.

Keywords : Temporomandibular joint, arthroscopy, laser, ultrasound.