Comparison of Three Techniques for Swine Temporomandibular Joint Space Injection

Aims: To compare the feasibility and accuracy of three injection techniques for entering the superior joint space of the swine temporomandibular joint (TMJ). Methods: Nine swine were used for this study, in which 500 μL of colored dye was injected into both TMJs of each swine. Three injection techniques were used: the posterior injection (PI), the anterosuperior injection (ASI), and the lateral injection (LI) techniques. Each injection technique was performed on six TMJs. Swine were sacrificed immediately after injection and the swine head was dissected in order to observe the dye distribution. Injection was considered successful if no dye could be observed outside the superior joint space. Results: The PI technique was successful in all six TMJs (success rate: 100%), the LI technique in three out of six TMJs (success rate: 50%), and the ASI technique in two out of six TMJs (success rate: 33%); the differences were statistically significant (chi-square test, P .05). Conclusion: The PI technique was more accurate than the LI or ASI techniques in accessing the swine superior TMJ space. Keywords: animal model, injection techniques, joint space, swine, temporomandibular joint