Effects of orthopedic treatment (distraction splint) on dentofacial deformities in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis

Abstract Background Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) frequently affects the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), which can alter mandibular growth and development and result in dentofacial deformities. Objective To assess the outcomes of orthopedic treatment with distraction splint (DS) in patients with JIA-related dentofacial deformity. Methods The retrospective study involved 30 patients with JIA and unilateral TMJ involvement, another study group of 20 patients with JIA and bilateral TMJ involvement, and a control group of 18 non-JIA orthodontic patients with Class II and III malocclusions. The inclusion criteria were DS treatment and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans before (T0) and 2 years after treatment (T1). Dentofacial morphology and deformity were evaluated based on a validated three-dimensional CBCT-based morphometric analysis. Intergroup differences in outcome measures were compared at T0 and T1, and intragroup changes between T0 and T1 were assessed using the Kruskal–Wallis test. Results Initial evaluations at T0 revealed significant differences between the unilateral and bilateral JIA groups and the control group for three out of eight dentofacial deformity variables: inter-side difference in total posterior mandibular height, mandibular axial angle, and posterior/anterior face height (ratio). At follow-up (T1), significant inter-group differences were only observed in total posterior mandibular height indicating that intergroup differences were less pronounced after splint treatment. Assessing inter-group changes between T0 and T1 showed that all parameters remained constant except posterior/anterior face height ratio, which significantly decreased between T0 and T1. Conclusions The findings demonstrate the potential of DS treatment for patients with JIA and unilateral or bilateral TMJ involvement to generally support normal dentofacial growth or at least limit further deterioration of dentofacial deformities.