Evaluation of mouth opening after coronoidectomy in patients with mandibular hipomobility due to coronoid process hyperplasia

Objectives: The ethiopathogenesis of coronoid process elongation remains unclear and no mechanism has yet been found to explain this overgrowth. Coronoid process hyperplasia is caused by the zygomatic posterior impingement of the coronoid process, resulting in a restricted mouth opening. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the length of the coronoid process on maximum mouth opening using cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) images from patients with coronoid process hyperplasia for diagnosis and planning. Materials and Methods: CBCT images of 10 patients with bilateral coronoid hyperplasia, aged 18-60 years, were analyzed in all three sections and the effect of the length of the coronoid process on the maximum mouth opening measured postoperatively was evaluated retrospectively. Results: A statistically significant difference was obtained between the mean values of maximum mouth opening before and after the operation (p<0.001). Statistically significant results were obtained between mouth opening values and quantitative parameters in the anatomical model created for each month in the postoperative period. Conclusion: It has been observed that the maximum mouth opening increases with time in the postoperative period and anatomical differences do not have a direct effect on the time until the patients reach the ideal amount of mouth opening.