RESUMO
Various evidences show a higher prevalence of temporomandibular disorder [TMD] in women. The purpose of this study was to evaluate T.M.D etiologic factors in women referring to Mashhad Dental School. Twenty-five patients with jaw clicking and 19 with M.P.D syndrome were randomly selected among female patients referring to Mashhad dental school. Seventeen women with no signs and symptoms of temporomandibular disorder were used as the control group. The women were between the ages of 18 to 40. All of them were examined for TMD and etiologic factors such as Parafunctional habits [Bruxism and Clenching] and premature contacts in eccentric movements. The level of blood estradiol and progesterone status were also recorded. The data were analyzed by Kruskal Wallis and Chi-square tests through SPSS software. Although there was a difference in level of blood estradiol and progesterone between TMD patients and control group, this difference was not significant. There was a significant difference between the two groups regarding parafunctional habits [P<0.001]. There was no significant difference between the two groups regarding eccentric premature contacts [P=0.098] In this study, the most important TMD etiologic factor was parafunctional habits [Bruxism and clenching] and the second effective factor was eccentric premature contacts. There was no relation between the level of blood estradiol and progesterone and the incidence of TMD in women