Resiliency Of Temporomandibular Joint Disc-A Literature Review.

The TMJ disc consists mainly of collagen fibres and proteoglycans being constrained in the interstices of the collagen fibre mesh. This construction results in a viscoelastic response of the disc to loading and enable the disc to play an important role as a stress absorber during function. Clinically, it is impossible to understand fully the fine points of occlusion without an indepth awareness of anatomy, physiology, and biomechanics of temporomandibular joint. The most important requirement for successful occlusal treatment is stable and comfortable temporomandibular joints. It is only through thorough understanding of how the normal healthy TMJ functions that dentist can make out what is wrong when its functioning is not comfortable. The purpose of this article is to review, the biomechanical behaviour of the TMJ disc in response to different loading conditions because the knowledge about the viscoelastic behaviour of disc is required for its functioning to be understood.