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Dental occlusion and body balance: A question of environmental constraints?
Author(s) -
JuliàSánchez Sonia,
ÁlvarezHerms Jesús,
Burtscher Martin
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of oral rehabilitation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.991
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-2842
pISSN - 0305-182X
DOI - 10.1111/joor.12767
Subject(s) - balance (ability) , occlusion , proprioception , dental occlusion , vestibular system , physical medicine and rehabilitation , sensory system , masticatory force , control (management) , psychology , stomatognathic system , cognitive psychology , medicine , communication , computer science , orthodontics , neuroscience , surgery , artificial intelligence
Summary Background In the past few years, growing interest was given to the relationship between the dental occlusion and the body balance. While most research focused on this relationship at static conditions, it is evident that the contribution of the sensory information for balance control is different depending on the environmental constraints. Research question The aim of the present paper was to elucidate whether the stomatognathic system (SS) contributes differently on body balance regulation according to the presence of external disturbances. Methods Literature regarding the different sources involved in the proprioceptive information to the SS was reviewed. The influence of dental occlusion on balance control at different external environments was then explored. Results The main findings are: (a) a plausible evidence between the masticatory and cervical muscles can be described; (b) a reciprocal connection between the trigeminal and vestibular nuclei supports the influence of the SS on body balance; (c) traditionally, research involving the relationship between the SS and balance control has focused on strictly controlled situations, thus, ignoring the sensory reweighting which occurs depending on the external disturbances; and (d) the afferences of dental occlusion for balance control seem strengthened when more difficult conditions are present. Conclusion Results of the present review suggest that afferent signals from dental occlusion effectively contribute to balance control when more external perturbations are present, that is unstable support surface, fatigue and tasks being performed. However, more studies are needed to elucidate the mechanisms by which dental occlusion may influence balance control focusing on different external environments.