Progression of cartilage degradation, bone resorption and pain in rat temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis induced by injection of iodoacetate.

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) is an important subtype of temporomandibular disorders. A simple and reproducible animal model that mimics the histopathologic changes, both in the cartilage and subchondral bone, and clinical symptoms of temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis (TMJOA) would help in our understanding of its process and underlying mechanism.

Objective: To explore whether injection of monosodium iodoacetate (MIA) into the upper compartment of rat TMJ could induce OA-like lesions.