Artificial Intelligence in Temporomandibular Joint Disorders: An Umbrella Review

Abstract

Objectives

Given the complexity of temporomandibular joint disorders (TMDs) and their overlapping symptoms with other conditions, an accurate diagnosis necessitates a thorough examination, which can be time-consuming and resource-intensive. Consequently, innovative diagnostic tools are required to increase TMD diagnosis efficiency and precision. Therefore, the purpose of this umbrella review was to examine the existing evidence about the usefulness of artificial intelligence (AI) in TMD diagnosis.

Material and Methods

A comprehensive search of the literature was performed from inception to November 30, 2024, in PubMed-MEDLINE, Embase, and Scopus databases. This review evaluated systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses (MAs) that reported TMD patients/datasets, any AI model as intervention, no treatment, placebo as comparator and accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, or predictive value of AI models as outcome. The extracted data were complemented with narrative synthesis.

Results

Out of 1497 search results, this umbrella review included five studies. One of the five articles was an SR while the other four were SRMAs. Three studies focused on patients with temporomandibular joint (TMJ) problems as a group, whereas two were specific to temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis (TMJOA). The included studies reported the use of imaging datasets as samples, including cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and panoramic radiography. The studies reported an accuracy level ranging from 0.59 to 1. Four studies reported sensitivity levels ranging from 0.76 to 0.80. Four studies reported specificity values ranging from 0.63 to 0.95 for TMJ conditions. However, only one study provided the area under the curve (AUC) in the diagnosis of TMDs.

Conclusions

AI has the ability to provide faster, more accurate, sensitive, and objective diagnosis of TMJ condition. However, the performance is determined on the AI models and datasets used. Therefore, before implementing AI models in clinical practice, it is essential for researchers to extensively refine and evaluate the AI application.