Association of volume and voxel intensity of the articular disc and lateral pterygoid muscle in migraine patients: a study with magnetic resonance imaging

Abstract

Objectives: To compare the volume and voxel intensity of articular disc and lateral pterygoid muscle (LPM) between a group of migraine patients and a control group (those without history of headache) by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Patients and methods: MRI scans of 17 migraine patients and 15 healthy controls subjects were analysed and processed, using ITK-SNAP software, by a single investigator, for calculation of volumes and voxel intensity of articular disc and superior and inferior head of LPM.

Results: There were statistically significant differences between migraine patients and controls regarding the volume and voxel intensity of articular disc and inferior head of LPM, increasing in migraine patients. Intra-rater was highly consistent and reproducible (intra-class correlation coefficient [ICC] = 1).

Conclusions: Higher voxel intensity in disc and inferior head of LPM of MRI scans was linked to the increased volume of articular disc, inferior head of LPM and migraine.

Keywords:

• Migraine
• temporomandibular joint
• articular disc
• headache
• volumetric assessment

Disclosure statement

The authors discard any kind of conflict of interest about this study.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by a grant from the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (Sao Paulo State Research Support Foundation; FAPESP) protocol number 2013/10999-5.