No abstract

The fate of developing tooth buds located in relation to mandibular fractures was investigated in three infancy cases. Three infants, 2 girls and a boy, aged from 1 year and 5-months old to 2 years and 6-months old, were treated for dislocated mandibular fracture in the symphyseal region by manual reduction and fixation with a thermoforming splint and circumferential wiring under general anesthesia. Fracture healing was uneventful in all cases. A few years later, no obvious deformity of the jaw or malocclusion was observed; however, malformation of the crown was found in one of the permanent teeth on the fracture line in the first case. In the second case, no abnormality was observed in one of the permanent teeth on the fracture line, but the effect on the other tooth could not be evaluated due to abnormality of the tooth probably not related to the injury. In the third case, root formation was arrested in one of the permanent teeth on the fracture line and the tooth was lost early after eruption. The development of tooth buds on the fracture line is not predictable and therefore, should be monitored by regular follow up.

Synovial chondromatosis is characterized by cartilaginous metaplasia. It frequently involves the elbow, knee, and hip, but rarely involves the temporomandibular joint(TMJ). The clinical course of this progressive disease is divided into 3 stages. We report a case of synovial chondromatosis of the right TMJ. The patient was a 62year-old woman. Preoperative physical, radiographic, and arthroscopic examinations showed no evidence of synovial chondromatosis. However, arthroscopic surgery of the right TMJ revealed many white, small masses and loose bodies in the upper joint space of the TMJ. We excised these masses. The histopathological diagnosis was synovial chondromatosis. These findings suggested that the loose bodies of synovial chondromatosis developed and progressed during the course of therapy.