BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Temporomandibular disorder is a collective term involving clinical masticatory muscles, temporomandibular joints and/or associated structures changes. This study aimed at reviewing, using major databases, the effectiveness and safety of sodium hyaluronate in the treatment of temporomandibular joint disorders, aiming at recommending or discarding its clinical use. CONTENTS: The following databases were queried: Medline, via Pubmed (1966-2013), Cochrane Central Registry of Controlled Trials (2012), Embase (1980-2013) and LILACS (1982-2013). The strategy was a search adjusted to each database to identify the largest possible number of studies involving sodium hyalorunate to manage joint temporomandibular disorders. Language was limited to articles published in English. The following keywords were crossed: temporomandibular joint management, versus sodium hyalorunate, versus acute or chronic reducing or nonreducing disk displacement, versus hyaluronic acid, versus osteoarthritis, versus viscosupplementation. Inclusion criteria were randomized, blind or double-blind studies, and case series with 15 or more participants. Exclusion criteria were open label-label studies, animal model studies and articles related to arthrogenous disorders not being treated with sodium hyalorunate infiltration of the temporomandibular joint. Methodological quality of such studies was evaluated and classified according to the level of evidence of the Oxford Center for Evidence Based Medicine. CONCLUSION: According to this review, one may state that sodium hyalorunate is effective and safe, being recommended to manage the following conditions: acute and chronic reducing and nonreducing disk displacement, osteoarthritis and degenerative joint disease.
Clinical treatment; Nonreducing disk displacement; Osteoarthritis; Reducing disk displacement Sodium hyalorunate; Surgical treatment; Temporomandibular joint; Viscosupplementation