Tongue pressure distribution of individual normal occlusions and exploration of related factors

Abstract

Summary Background Tongue plays an important part in oral and maxillofacial system. Measurement of tongue pressure helps to evaluate the performance of tongue movement. Objectives To establish a system for measuring tongue pressure against hard palate and to preliminarily explore pressure distribution of individual normal occlusions and the relationship with dental arch form. Methods A total of 19 volunteers of individual normal occlusions out of 189 dental students met inclusion criteria (nine males, ten females, aged 25.53 ± 0.96 years). A force‐sensing resistor device was used to measure tongue pressure at rest and functional state (swallowing). We observed tongue pressure of four channel (anterior, posterior and lateral sides of hard palate) in sitting, supine position and swallowing. We analysed pressure differences according to gender and explored correlation relationship between tongue pressure and dental arch width and length using 3D digital maxillary image. Results In rest, tongue pressure against hard palate increased from front to back in both sitting and supine position, without gender differences. When swallowing saliva, the pressure at lateral sides of females was found significantly higher than that of males. Bivariate correlation analysis revealed duration of swallowing was positively correlated with BMI and weight at posterior region and positively correlated with palatal length at anterior palate. The greater the dental arch width, the smaller the pressure of swallowing in the anterior and lateral region. Conclusion In rest, there was consistent pressure of tongue against hard palate. The pressure increased significantly during swallowing, especially in females. Tongue pressure was related to dental arch length, width, BMI and weight.

Dysphagia Phenotypes in Spinal Muscular Atrophy: The Past, Present, and Promise for the Future

“…The source of these inappropriate growth trajectories and structural proportions has been attributed primarily to weakness of facial, lingual, and labial musculature that, in typically developing children, apply tension to appropriately shape these developing structures (Houston et al, 1994;van Bruggen et al, 2011). Our work and that of others have also appreciated these morphological changes to include the presence of a high, narrow palatal groove, likely stemming from the lack of resting palatal pressure by the tongue (Enomoto et al, 2017;Grotto et al, 2016;Yu & Gao, 2019). These structural differences have been associated with reports of choking on solids and impaired mastication, likely indicating they too play a role in reducing an individual's ability to safely and efficiently eat solids.…”

Low Tongue Strength and the Number of Teeth Present Are Associated with Cognitive Decline in Older Japanese Dental Outpatients: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Therefore, future studies should enroll more participants for effective evaluation of various factors. For instance, the association between tongue pressure and dental arch form has been previously described [ 56 ]. Finally, the oral function assessed in this study required voluntary movements by the participants.…”

A Novel Tongue Pressure Measurement Instrument with Wireless Mobile Application Control Function and Disposable Positioning Mouthpiece

“…In recent decades, researchers have devoted themselves to studies of tongue pressure. Previous handheld bulb pressure measurement devices were easy for users to operate, but the testing position stability largely depended on the operator, resulting in a lack of comparability between different studies [ 30 ]. The JMS device has also been widely used for research studies on aging, frailty, sarcopenia, and dysphagia in Japan in the past 15 years and has been reported as having good validity [ 31 , 32 ].…”