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RESEARCH REPORT |
1 University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Dentistry, Departments of Growth and Development,
2 Oral Biology, and
3 Adult Restorative Dentistry, PO Box 683740, Lincoln, NE 68583-0755, USA; and
4 University of Nebraska, Department of Biometry, 103 Miller Hall, Lincoln, NE 68583-0712, USA;
* corresponding author, jnickel{at}unmc.edu
| ABSTRACT |
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KEY WORDS: TMJ cartilage mechanics stresses ploughing
| INTRODUCTION |
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Tractional forces and compressive stresses applied repeatedly to the cartilage surface serve as sources of mechanical fatigue (Dunbar et al., 2001). Tractional forces are the result of frictional and ploughing forces produced by the deformation of the cartilage matrix as a stress-field translates over the surface (Linn, 1967; Mow et al., 1993). Tractional forces associated with static and dynamic friction on the surface of the TMJ disc are low (Nickel and McLachlan, 1994a; Nickel et al., 2001). Tractional forces associated with ploughing in the TMJ have not been characterized. However, stress-field translation, a pre-requisite for ploughing, has been demonstrated in vivo in humans (Gallo et al., 2000), where stress-field translation velocities were shown to exceed 100 mm/sec.
In general, loading of cartilage produces a "trampoline effect", where a portion of the total compressive load applied to the surface is supported by tangential forces on the cartilage surface (Donzelli et al., 1999). Consequently, compressive stress distribution over the cartilage surface will also affect the magnitudes of tractional forces imposed on articulating surfaces. Factors that increase compressive stresses on the TMJ disc during static loading include decreased cartilage thickness and decreased congruency between articulating surfaces (Nickel and McLachlan, 1994b; Beek et al., 2001).
Magnitudes of tractional forces and compressive stresses on hyaline cartilage surfaces are correlated according to time-dependent re-distribution of the fluid phase within the disc matrix. Re-distribution of the fluid phase accounts for stress-relaxation, a behavior typical of statically loaded cartilages, that is affected by factors such as rate of load application, matrix porosity, pressure gradient, and cartilage thickness (Li et al., 2003). In general, peak compressive stresses occur immediately after the disc is loaded (Huang et al., 2003), whereas peak tractional forces increase with the duration of loading (Mabuchi et al., 1998).
To date, no data have been reported regarding the effects of stress-field translation and duration of loading on tractional forces and compressive stresses on the surface of the TMJ disc. The specific aims of this project were to test the time-dependent effects of compressive loading and stress-field translation on TMJ disc surface tractional forces and stresses.
| MATERIALS & METHODS |
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Static loading of each TMJ disc was accomplished with the use of a hinged-beam apparatus (Figs. 1A
, 1B
). Loads placed at one end of the beam imposed a 10-N vertical compressive load on the disc via an acrylic indenter at the other end of the beam. The 10-N load reflected the minimum condyle load expected during a light bite force (Iwasaki et al., in press). The indenter was shaped to produce a mediolateral radius of contact similar to that measured in humans (Gallo et al., 2000). Indenter position and velocity were controlled through a hinged pendulum connected to a computer-controlled electromagnetic force generator. As the indenter moved along the mediolateral axis of the loaded TMJ disc, tractional forces were measured by an instrumented strut which supported the loaded indenter (Fig. 1B
). Calibration of the instrumented strut permitted us to measure tractional forces to an accuracy of ± 0.05 N. We used a linear array of pressure transducers to measure compressive stresses beneath the TMJ disc according to previously described methods (Nickel and McLachlan, 1994b). Each transducer was accurate to within ± 10 kPa and had a saturation pressure of 2 mPa.
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Discs were warmed in 37°C PBS for all experiments. Before the tests were repeated on a given day, each disc was placed in 37°C PBS for 2 hrs so that the fluids which were lost during the loading experiments could be re-absorbed. We conducted preliminary studies to compare tractional forces and peak stresses measured on the surfaces of fresh discs with data measured on the surfaces of the discs that had been frozen at 15°C and thawed to a temperature of 37°C. Maximum differences in tractional forces and peak stresses were, on average, ± 15%. These differences were deemed small enough to allow the discs to be frozen for up to 4 days between experimental test days.
Using custom computer software, we analyzed data describing tractional forces and compressive stresses during the first 3 cycles of indenter translation over the TMJ disc to identify maximum tractional force, maximum compressive stress, and the average of pressure-gauge peak stresses per cycle. We used analysis of variance to evaluate the effects of load duration (10 sec, 60 sec), cycle number (1, 2, 3), and load duration and cycle number combined on tractional forces and compressive stresses. Disc location (right, left) and trial (1, 2) were used as measures of variability. Levels of significance were set conservatively at p
0.01. In addition, we performed a non-linear regression analysis on data from 20 discs to determine the relationship between peak tractional forces and velocity of stress-field translation. Criteria for inclusion of the data from a disc in the analysis were synchronization of peak tractional force with peak velocity and smooth time-dependent transitions of the tractional forces as the velocity of stress-field translation decreased to zero and then accelerated to peak velocity in the opposite direction (Fig. 1C
). These criteria eliminated the transient effects of localized areas of cartilage compression. Static coefficients of friction reported for the TMJ disc were compared with coefficients of traction, calculated according to:
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| RESULTS |
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Duration of load alone had no significant effect, but number of cycles and the combined effects of load duration and cycle number significantly affected tractional forces (Appendix Table 1). Peak tractional force following 60 sec of static loading was greatest during the first cycle and was significantly greater than peak tractional force following 10 sec of static loading (p < 0.001, Fig. 2
). There were significant cycle number effects, where peak tractional forces were reduced with increased cycling (p < 0.010.001). Overall, the results showed that peak tractional forces occurred at the start of movement and were greater following longer periods of static loading. During the second and third cycles of movement, peak tractional force was non-linearly related to velocity of stress-field translation (R2 = 0.73, Fig. 3
). Peak tractional forces at stress-field translation velocities of 110 mm/sec were an order of magnitude greater than those at velocities less than 40 mm/sec. When the loaded indenter was at the lateral and medial extents of translation, indenter velocity was zero, yet small tractional forces of approximately 0.05 N were measured under the lateral portions of the disc.
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| DISCUSSION |
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The tractional force-velocity of the stress-field translation relationship was developed with data from 20 discs that were statically loaded for 10 sec. Static loading for 60 sec created significant displacement and localized matrix consolidation. Subsequent measurements of tractional forces were influenced by residual localized matrix consolidation, which confounded the tractional force-velocity relationship. Discs loaded for 10 sec were less affected by residual strains during the second and third oscillatory cycles. This was likely due to the re-distribution of fluid produced by the movement of the loaded indenter back over the disc, which eliminated the localized areas of compression. Data from the second and third cycles met the inclusion criteria and permitted the "normal" viscoelastic behavior of the TMJ disc to be studied. Future studies should investigate the transient changes in ploughing forces produced by residual compression of the cartilage matrix.
Previous work has suggested that the magnitudes of ploughing mechanical work done to the cartilage varied by two orders of magnitude between individuals (Gallo et al., 2000). The ploughing forces used in these previous calculations were derived empirically from the effects of strain rate during tensile testing of discs, due to the lack of data describing the ploughing forces produced by stress-field translation. The current project provides more accurate data for the calculation of in vivo work in TMJ cartilage by ploughing forces.
Static loading for 10 sec typically produced maximum compressive stresses more than twice those measured following static loading for 60 sec. These differences may be due to stress-relaxation, which is typical of viscoelastic tissues. Mathematical models of cartilage poroviscoelasticity suggest that the time-dependent equilibration of stresses is due to re-distribution of the fluid phase within the biphasic viscoelastic matrix of the disc. Time-dependent re-distribution of load over a larger area produced lower stresses following 60 sec of loading. A similar phenomenon was shown in the hip (Macirowski et al., 1994) and in laboratory experiments on pieces of cartilage (DiSilvestro et al., 2001). In the current experiments, however, a consequence of longer periods of static loading was greater tractional forces due to localized consolidation of the cartilage matrix in the center of the stress-field, similar to results for ankle (Linn, 1967) and knee cartilage (Mabuchi et al., 1998). With respect to the effects of cycle number on peak tractional forces and peak compressive stresses, movement of the stress-field during indenter translation may have contributed to re-distribution of the fluid portion of the disc matrix, thereby increasing the area for distribution of load, and eliminating the localized region of matrix consolidation that resulted in large tractional forces at the start of movement.
It remains to be determined whether the effects of loading on tractional forces and compressive stresses in laboratory experiments are like those produced in vivo. The applied static loads of 10 N were lower than loads in the human TMJ during mastication and bruxism (Nickel et al., 1997). In addition, stress-relaxation behavior of cartilage is affected by the radius of the contact area relative to the thickness of the cartilage (Suh and Spilker, 1994). The standardized indenter did not exactly reproduce the area of loading that occurs in vivo. It is possible that the radius of contact area used was smaller than that found in vivo. This would tend to increase tractional forces.
In conclusion, the magnitudes of tractional forces and compressive stresses produced on the surface of the disc depended on duration of loading and were consistent with the stress-relaxation behavior of biphasic viscoelastic cartilage. As well, the tractional forces increased in a non-linear manner with increasing velocity of stress-field translation, and were significantly greater than classic frictional forces.
| ACKNOWLEDGMENTS |
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| FOOTNOTES |
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Received July 24, 2003; Last revision May 16, 2004; Accepted June 1, 2004
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J.C. Nickel, L.R. Iwasaki, M.W. Beatty, M.A. Moss, and D.B. Marx Static and Dynamic Loading Effects on Temporomandibular Joint Disc Tractional Forces J. Dent. Res., September 1, 2006; 85(9): 809 - 813. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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