The effects of occlusal splints on gait and running patterns. A kinematic analysis

Abstract

Introduction: The relationship between dental occlusion and static body posture has been researched and debated in some publications [1–3]. Far less attention has been spent on studying the same relationship, but with regards to human locomotion, with only a scarce number of studies addressing the matter. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine if changes in dental occlusion are correlated to body posture while walking and running.

Materials and methods: This study enrolled fifteen healthy subjects (age: 21.13 ± 2.53 yrs), assessed by an expert dentist and deemed asymptomatic for temporomandibular disorders. Gait and running analysis was randomly performed on a treadmill in three different conditions: a) Occlusal splint; b) Placebo splint and c) No splint (control). The occlusal splint used in this study positioned the temporomandibular joint in a centric relation position. Kinematic data were collected using a 3D motion capture, consisting five high speed cameras system, for body horizontal sway (shoulders, anterior and posterior superior iliac spine) and vertical sway (spine). This research was approved by the ethics committee of the Faculdade de Motricidade Humana for use of human research (6/2016).

Results: The use of occlusal splints did not influence the body sway during gait and running since no differences were found in the mean values for both horizontal and vertical body sway, for all the test conditions

Discussion and conclusions: Dental occlusion, achieved through the use of occlusal splints, that change the temporomandibular joint into a centric relation position, appears to have no effect on body horizontal and vertical sway, for gait and running in healthy male subjects. High inter-subject variability in the kinematic parameters was found, mainly during gait. Due to this, intra-subject variability should be considered in future studies in order to understand the occlusal splints influence among subjects.

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to extend their gratitude to the athletes for their contributions and participation in this study