Pig as Pre-Clinical Animal Model for Research on Temporomandibular Joint Surgery: A Systematic Review.

Introduction: Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) are common myotemporomandibular joint disorders in the general population, but their management remains complex with significant failure or recurrence rates. Research on this topic commonly uses pig models. This study investigated whether the pig was a suitable model for surgical temporomandibular joint (TMJ) research.

Materials and methods: This systematic review was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. The research question was: 'Is the pig a good model for studies of the TMJ and TMDs?' The search was conducted in MEDLINE/PubMed, EMBASE and Web of Science databases.

Results: A total of 761 articles were initially identified. After the removal of 322 duplicates, 439 articles were screened. Thirty-nine articles were deemed relevant based on the review of titles and abstracts. Finally, 17 met the inclusion/exclusion criteria and were included in the review. All studies concluded that the pig is an appropriate animal model for TMJ research. While only a few studies have investigated TMD induction in pigs, classical methods of TMD induction were considered effective.

Discussion: TMJ morphology in pigs closely resembled that of humans. The pig TMJ exhibited rotational and translational joint motions similar to those in humans, making it the most suitable animal for TMJ surgical research.