Do exostoses correlate with contact disfunctions? A case study of a maxillary exostosis

Abstract

A maxillary exostosis is a benign overgrowth of bone that occurs on the outer or facial surface of the maxilla and is usually located near the premolar or molar teeth. This paper investigates the correlation between the presence and growth of jaw exostoses and the oral mechanics of contact. For this purpose, a case study of an upper jawbone exostosis of a female patient was considered. 3D models of the patient's cranial bones were extracted from 2D computerized tomography (CT) data and were analyzed by proper software. A contact congruence evaluation based on the Winkler contact model was performed, and results were presented in terms of indentation maps and load distributions. Results were correlated with the theory of bone remodelling by Wolff.