[Correlation of the disk configuration with duration of illness and opening distance in patients with closed lock of the temporomandibular joint].

Classification of disk configuration for 96 joints (89 patients) of internal derangement with closed lock of the temporomandibular joint was performed by means of double-spacing contrast arthrotomography. The results of the classification were presented in the first report of this series. The disk shape was divided into 3 types; the first type-prolonged shape maintaining the main parts of the disk, the second type-folded disk, and the third type-massed disk. In this article, the authors tried to clarify the correlation of disk configuration with the duration of illness and with the interincisal opening distance at the first presentation. In the results, the average duration of clicking and locking was statistically longer in the joints of the third type. The interincisal opening distance was statistically smaller in the joints of the first type. These results indicate that the severity of the disk deformation is closely related to the duration of illness and to the joint function.