Condylar Hyperplasia- an Insidious Developmental Disorder of Mandible

Condylar hyperplasia is a developmental disorder of mandible characterised by accelerated growth of condylar head of mandible either unilateral or bilateral. Rate of abnormal growth of the condyle determines the severity of facial asymmetry causing distress and rarely pain. It has a multifactorial etiology with increased prevalence in females. Two basic growth vectors occur with CH: horizontal growth vector (type 1) and vertical growth vector (type 2). The prevalence ratio between types 1 and 2 is approximately 15:1. Type-1 condylar hyperplasia increases anteroposterior dimension of mandible causing crossbites and Type-2 increases vertical height of mandible causing openbite. Facial asymmetry due to growth disturbances of the mandible mostly requires orthognathic surgical corrections, and asymmetries treated by this method have a high success rate and long-term stability. However, in very severe cases of facial asymmetry associated with condylar hyperplasia (CH), a partial or complete condylar resection may be necessary for correction of the condition.