Analysis of Dental Malocclusion and Neuromotor Control in Young Healthy Subjects through New Evaluation Tools

Abstract

The presence of a correlation between stomatognathic and postural systems has been investigated by different authors trying to identify a possible influence of dental occlusion on body posture and balance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between dental occlusion and neuromuscular control in a healthy young population using modern evaluation tools. 25 subjects (9 males and 16 females, aged 23 to 44) were evaluated for dental occlusion, particularly in relation to overjet and overbite parameters, anterior and posterior crossbite, scissor bite, mandibular crowding, molar and canine class, and deviation of the median dental line. Neuromotor control was assessed using two different types of stabilometric platforms in both monopodalic and bipodalic equilibriums (Prokin-B and MF-Stability, Tecnobody, Italy). All subjects were evaluated with and without cotton rolls positioned between the upper and lower arches at the premolar level in order to temporarily eliminate any pathological contact. In all 25 subjects, no statistically significant differences were revealed between the evaluations performed with and without cotton rolls in all the analyzed conditions (in static, in dynamics, with open and closed eyes). This study did not find a significant correlation between dental occlusion and neuromuscular control in a young and healthy population.