ABSTRACT

The human masticatory system is composed of several structures: the mandibula, the maxilla, the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), the teeth, the periodontal ligaments (PDL) and the chewing muscles. A considerable amount of literature has been published on these individual components. The PDL has been analyzed with finite element (FE) models using different material assumptions (Fil et al. 2012). A combination of FE and rigid body analysis was employed to model the TMJ. The articular disc and cartilage layers were represented by FE while the bones jaw was modeled as a rigid body (Koolstra & van Eijden 2005). Finally, the muscles’ role has been studied through electromyography and optimization strategies (Langenbach & Hannam 1999). The aim of the current contribution is to incorporate all these elements into a single FE model. This work was part of a project performed within cooperation for the AIF (Martinez et al., 2014).