THE DISTRIBUTION PECULIARITIES OF TEMPOROMANDIBULAR DISORDERS AMONG PATIENTS WHO SOUGHT FOR CONSULTATION, THEIR GENDER AND AGE CHARACTERISTICS

Vigilance regarding temporomandibular disorders (TMD) in daily dental practice allows timely establishment of their course. A practicing dentist needs to have not only knowledge of the signs and symptoms of TMD, but also information about which TMDs are more often detected at a doctor's appointment, in which gender and at what age. The aim of the study was to determine the distribution of TMD, including age and gender characteristics, among patients who sought dental consultations for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) complaints. Object and research methods. An examination of 1,346 patients with complaints that may be associated with the course of TMD was conducted. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 1274 individuals were selected, of which 1047 were women, 227 were men. Using DC/TMD, patients were divided into groups depending on the diagnosis. One and the same patient could be assigned to several groups in the case of detection of the simultaneous course of several disorders. Research results and their discussion. Among all patients, discs displacement (DD) of TMJ (regard- less of the type of displacement) was observed in 78.96% of cases, muscle disorders (MD) – 61.70%, hypermobility disorders (HD) – 29.28%, degenerative joint diseases (DJD) – 20.49%, joint effusion – 32.89%. Among patients with DD, DD with reduction was observed in 72.07%, and DD without reduction in 33.70%. Regardless of the type of disorder, the average age in the female group was greater than in the male group. No significant difference was found between the structure of TMD in women and in men, except for the DJD groups (p<0.05). In 55.09% of patients, two or more different disorders were present simultaneously. Among all patients, the share of persons with a combination of DJD+MR – 33.99%, DJD+DD – 15.31%, DJD+HD – 4.63%, DJD+effusion – 7.06%. Conclusions. Although the number of appeals by women with verified TMD diagnosis greatly exceeds the number of men, however, comparing the TMD structures of men and women, a significant difference was revealed only between the portions of DJD. This allows us to assume the influence of gender on the development of DJD. Among the articular disorders, DJD is most often combined with DD, that may indicate a relation between these disorders.