Cephalometric and clinical examination data from a group of 62 subjects with documented structural and functional changes in the temporomandibular joint were compared with that of a group of 102 subjects from a normative sample. The purpose of the study was twofold: to provide a description of a sample of subjects with documented TMJ alterations and to make cephalometric comparisons between this sample and a sample of control subjects from the general population. Results indicated an increased proportion of subjects with "high plane" characteristics and a decreased proportion of subjects with "low plane" characteristics in the experimental sample, but little or no differences in dental and occlusal parameters were found. There were no differences in the proportions or characteristics of subjects in any Angle classification group. There was a tendency, based solely on descriptive statistics, for the group of experimental subjects with negative trauma histories to exhibit an increased proportion of "division 2" incisal relationships.