Temporomandibular joint syndrome: diagnostician's dilemma--a review.

A succinct presentation of the definition, historical notations, etiology, anatomy, physiology, pathology, clinical picture, differential diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) syndrome is presented. Accentuation is placed upon both the etiology of this distress, as well as the need for accurate diagnosis assisted by an elimination process via differential diagnosis. Diagnosticians can discern only what is known to them, Thus, the diagnosis of TMJ syndrome escapes the examiner too frequently. Misdiagnosis results because of the bizarre symptom-complex that mimics many diseases. Failure to diagnose can lead to erroneous empirical treatment that is ineffective. Whereas definitive scientific therapy, programmed to the patient's needs, can be a rewarding therapeutic experience. Moreover, misdiagnosis is a valid basis for a legal cause of action against physicians of all genre.