The Effect of Masseter Muscle Pain on Chewing-Gum Chewing Efficiency

Objectives:

The purposes of this study are to evaluate the effect of masseter muscle pain on chewing gum chewing efficiency by using a standardized test food. And to evaluate the curative effect of transcutaneous electronic nerve stimulation (TENS) on patients with masseter muscle pain.

Methods:

The experimental group is 22 females with masseter muscle pain; the control group is 12 females. All of them are Angle's Class I complete dentition, no dental missing or periodontal disease, no denture restoration other than single crowns and no tempromandibular joint pain.

The test food was a chewing gum containing hydroxylapatite (HA) particles. All subjects chewed the test food 25 strokes, then the homogeneity within the gum bolus was calculated. The chewing movement was recorded with sironathograph (SioPAK JT3 system). The experimental group received 5 times TENS treatment (15 mins/time). Pressure pain threshold(PPT) and Visual Analog Scale(VAS) were checked before and after every TENS treatment. After finishing the treatment courses, the chewing test was performed again to compare the curative effect of TENS.

After data collection, we used two-sample t-test and paired t-test to do the data analysis.

Results:

The chewing efficiency of patients (88.53%) was less than the normal subject (92.52). During five times treatment of TENS, the PPT increased and VAS decreased gradually. The chewing efficiency of patients got better after TENS treatment.

Conclusions:

Masseter muscle pain decreased the chewing gum chewing efficiency. After receiving TENS treatment, the chewing efficiency got better.