Surgical treatment of recurrent mandibular dislocation by augmentation of the articular eminence with cranial bone.

Purpose: This article describes the use of calvarial bone grafts to augment the height of the articular eminence to treat recurrent mandibular dislocation.

Patients And Methods: Eight patients with mandibular recurrent dislocation were studied clinically, radiographically, and with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) immediately before surgery, and at 1 week, 6 months, and 1 year after the operation. All the patients were treated with a modification of the Lindemann-Norman technique, performing an oblique osteotomy in the articular eminence and placing a calvarial graft into the osteotomy to augment the height of the eminence.

Results: During 18 months of follow-up, no cases of dislocation were noted.

Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that the surgical technique presented has very low morbidity and predictable outcomes.