This is a three-year-old girl who came to the maxillofacial surgery consultation complaining of repeated episodes of TMJ dislocation in the last month, who had come to the emergency room on several occasions.
The episodes consisted of a few minutes of access, in which the patient could not close her mouth and satiety when the child was asleep after giving her analgesics.
The patient had a history of juvenile chronic arthritis that had been accompanied by symptoms in the knees and was currently controlled with low-dose corticoids.
Having suspected temporomandibular disorder, the pediatrician requested an X-ray of both TMJ and referred the child to our consultation.
In the physical examination, there were no signs of joint involvement, dental occlusion was good, and acceptable mandibular mobility, although slightly painful at forcing opening and closing.
Erythema and desquamation of the EAC were observed in the otoscopy, as well as pain when inserting the otoscopy into the canal.
The X-ray was normal.
With the diagnosis of external obstruction, the patient was sent to the ENT service, where the appropriate treatment was resolved.
