Effect of Orthodontic Treatment on Occlusal Condition and Masticatory Function

Abstract

Change in occlusion and masticatory function after orthodontic treatment was investigated by a follow-up study in a group of 14 patients with malocclusion (3 men, 11 women, aged 12-46 years). All completed a food questionnaire and underwent occlusal force evaluation using a pressure-sensitive sheet at pre-treatment, post-treatment, and during the retention phase. The number of foods identified as difficult to eat decreased at post-treatment in all patients. The mean occlusal force was 646.65223.5 N at pretreatment, 401.15109.1 N at post-treatment, and 530.65183.6 N during the retention phase. The mean occlusal contact area was 14.155.9 mm 2 at pre-treatment, 6.551.7 mm 2 at post-treatment, and 9.853.8 mm 2 during the retention phase. The mean average occlusal pressure was 47.656.6 MPa at pre-treatment, 62.255.7 MPa at post-treatment, and 55.456.7 MPa during the retention phase. A Dental Prescale film evaluation revealed that occlusal force and occlusal contact area increased over the 1-year retention phase. An improvement in level of satisfaction with mastication ability was reported at posttreatment and during the retention phase. Average occlusal pressure at post-treatment increased significantly (p<0.01), which may account for the observed increase in the ability of the patients to bite through food. These results suggest that an increase in average occlusal pressure improves level of satisfaction with mastication ability.

Changes in occlusal function after extraction of premolars: 2-year follow-up

“…12 In a previous study, occlusal contact area and force were reported to be greater in male patients than in female patients. Further, the occlusal contact area was reported to be larger in patients aged 40 years, while there was no statistically significant difference in the occlusal contact area among the three age groups (11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30), and 31-40 years).…”

“…16 The purpose of this 2-year follow-up study was to evaluate changes in occlusal contact area and force in nonextraction, two maxillary premolar extraction, and four premolar extraction cases. Measurements were taken before, immediately after, and 2 years after treatment with a fixed orthodontic appliance.…”

Is the main goal of mastication achieved after orthodontic treatment? A prospective longitudinal study

“…The main explanation for this improvement is probably the increased number of occlusal contacts achieved after treatment. Although this variable has not been evaluated in the present study, previous studies have shown that orthodontic treatment can increase the occlusal contact area and occlusal force, 5 , 6 which are important factors in the determination of both sensorial and motor aspects of mastication 21 26 …”

“…Some studies reported that although the orthodontic and/or surgical correction of malocclusions usually improves the self-estimated masticatory ability (the individual’s own assessment of mastication), the masticatory performance (the objective measurement of mastication) is still impaired in these patients compared to subjects with normal occlusion 3 4 On the other hand, some studies have shown that orthodontic treatment is able to restore the masticatory performance and also other variables related to mastication, such as occlusal force and occlusal contacts 5 6 …”

Association between buccal mucosa ridging and oral or occlusal status among older people

“…Additionally, CP was also reported to be closely associated with masticatory performance (Takahashi et al., ). Moreover, a previous study reported that increased AOP improved the level of satisfaction with masticatory performance (Makino et al., ). Therefore, further studies demonstrating the association between the BMR status and masticatory performance are necessary to confirm these hypotheses.…”