Congenital Temporomandibular Joint Ankylosis: Case Report and Literature Review

Congenital temporomandibular joint (TMJ) ankylosis is a rare craniofacial malformation which involves the fusion of the mandibular condyle to the cranial base without any form of trauma or infection. It is severely disabling, both functional and aesthetic (with limited mouth opening, feeding difficulties, and progressive facial imbalance at birth). The scenario in this report is an 8-year-old girl who presented with the complaint of left-sided bony ankylosis of the TMJ. The affected side was completely fused with the bony mandible, and the mandible was hypoplastic in the affected side, which was proven by the use of computed tomography with 3D reconstruction. The operation performed on the patient was the gap arthroplasty by the preauricular method using the insertion of a temporomyofascial flap, and the next step includes bilateral coronoidectomies. Physiotherapy was also initiated on the third day of operation to ensure that the jaws moved. At 3 months follow-up, the patient had no recurrence or complications of the mouth opening of 29 mm. The case has pointed out the necessity to diagnose early, perform appropriate surgical procedures, and provide consistent physiotherapy to achieve the best outcomes in congenital TMJ ankylosis.