OBJECTIVE To assess the effect of sodium hyaluronate (HA) for degenerative disorders of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ). METHODS A prospective randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted. The experimental group received injections in the upper compartments of the involved TMJs with 1% HA 6 mg, whereas the control group received prednisolone (PS) 12.5 mg once a week. Three to four injections were as one course. Before and one week after the treatment courses, clinical symptoms, amount of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and total protein of synovial fluid were measured and compared. RESULTS Sixty-seven patients were included and 4 out of them were dropped out. There were 12 males and 51 females, among them, 14 cases with synovitis, 21 with anterior disc displacement without reduction and 28 with osteoarthritis of the TMJ. Thirty-five patients allocated in HA group and 28 in PS group. Both drugs could relieve the clinical symptoms of TMJ degenerative disorders. In HA group, marked improvement rate was 51.43% and failure rate was 2.86%, whereas marked improvement rate 39.29% and failure rate 17.86% in PS group. The declined levels of IL-6 in synovial fluid was notably greater in HA group than those in PS group. CONCLUSIONIntra-articular injection of HA is effective and safe to treat TMJ degenerative disorders with mild adverse reactions, better in terms of effective rate and declined level of IL-6 than PS.