Eva Levring Jaghagen
Several functions are crucial for life support and wellbeing in the dentomaxillofacial region e.g., breathing, chewing, swallowing and speech. For that, adequate function in the oral cavity, pharynx and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) are necessary.
Temporomandibular disorders can be examined with TMJ arthrography if there are contraindications for MRI or requests for assessment of e.g., real-time dynamic function or perforations in the disc. Further, fluoroscopy can be used for precise administration of steroid injection in the TMJ.
Unintelligible speech can be a social problem; making communication and socialising difficult. A large group of patients suffer from dysphagia e.g., due to stroke, head and neck cancer treatment, neurogenic diseases and less well known, snoring. Aspiration with coughing and choking can be life-threatening and have a negative effect on quality of life since eating is important for both nutrition and socialising. Videofluoroscopy is a valuable aid for assessment of speech and swallowing dysfunction.