Tongue force in subjects with bruxism

Author(s)

Lis Meirelles

• Document type: Master's Dissertation
• Press: Piracicaba, SP.
• Institution: Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Faculdade de Odontologia de Piracicaba
• Defense date: 2014-04-04

Examining board members

Renata Cunha Matheus Rodrigues Garcia; Ana Carolina Pero Vizoto; Celia Marisa Rizzatti Barbosa

• Advisor: Renata Cunha Matheus Rodrigues Garcia

Abstract

Bruxism is a subject of intense research in the dental field and it is correlated with emotional factors and stress events experienced by individuals. Once the habit of teeth grinding can lead to indentations on the tongue, this study assessed the strength of the tongue in bruxism patients before and after therapy by occlusal splints. Volunteers were recruited from Piracicaba Dental School - UNICAMP and divided into two groups: (1) volunteers with bruxism, (experimental, n=20) and (2) volunteers without bruxism (control, n=20), selected according to the inclusion criteria. The diagnosis of bruxism was performed by clinical examination and the use of eletromiographic disposable Bitestrip®. Subsequently, all participants underwent a test to verify the tongue strength by means of pressure sensors (T0 ¿ baseline). Next, the volunteers in the experimental group received occlusal splints as a treatment for bruxism, and those from the control group received an oral appliance (placebo). Subjects from both groups were instructed to use splints during night. After 30 and 60 days of splint use, tongue pressure was reassessed. The results obtained were submited to analysis of variance for repeated measures, followed by Tukey test for multiple comparisons. All calculations were performed using the SAS system and the level of significance was set at 5%. Subjects with bruxism showed the highest values of tongue strength (P=0.0027). The use of occlusal splints and oral appliance reduced (P <0.05) the maximum tongue strenght for experimental and control groups, independent of tongue region. In addition, it was observed that tongue has greater strength in mandibular jaw (P <0.05). In conclution, subjects with bruxism have a higher tongue strength compared with non-bruxers and the use of occlusal splints and oral appliance are able to decrease tongue strength (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 12/07286-4 - Maximum tongue force in subjects with bruxism
• Grantee: Lis Meirelles
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master