Comparison of clinical and magnetic resonance imaging diagnosis in patients with disk displacement in the temporomandibular joint.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to validate the Research Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (RDC/TMD) for the diagnostic subgroup of disk displacement with reduction, with magnetic resonance imaging used as a gold standard.

STUDY DESIGN: The diagnoses from the clinical examination of 78 joints in 39 patients, each with disk displacement with reduction in at least one TMJ, were compared with magnetic resonance imaging diagnoses. The readers of the magnetic resonance images were blinded to the clinical diagnoses. The data analysis included kappa statistics and calculation of predictive values.

RESULTS: The predictive value of the RDC/TMD for disk displacement with reduction was 0.65. For disk displacement alone-the movement of the disk on opening not being considered-the predictive value was 0.92. The diagnostic agreement between RDC/TMD and magnetic resonance imaging diagnoses for all joints examined was 53.8%. Most of the disagreement was due to false negative clinical diagnoses for asymptomatic joints.

CONCLUSIONS: A positive RDC/TMD examination is predictive for internal derangement but not reliable with regard to the type of disk displacement; such examination is therefore of limited value in determining the true disk position and its functional movements.