Electromyographic Study of Masticatory Muscle Function in Children with Down Syndrome.

Liliana Szyszka-Sommerfeld,Marzia Maglitto,Gianrico Spagnuolo,Monika Machoy,Sławomir Wilczyński,Krzysztof Woźniak,Mariangela Cernera,Magdalena Sycińska-Dziarnowska

doi:10.3390/jcm11030506

Abstract

This study assessed the electrical activity of the masticatory muscles in both children with down syndrome (DS) and healthy children. After applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 30 patients aged between 7.9 and 11.8 years participated in the study. They were divided into two groups of 15: DS and non-DS. A DAB-Bluetooth device (Zebris Medical GmbH, Germany) was used to record the electromyographical (EMG) activity of the right and left temporal and of the right and left masseter muscles at rest and during maximum voluntary clenching (MVC). The asymmetry index between right and left masticatory muscle EMG activity was calculated for each position. The Mann–Whitney U test was applied to analyze the study results. There were no differences in the electrical activity of the temporal and masseter muscles at rest between the groups. During MVC, the asymmetry index for the masseter muscles was significantly higher in subjects with DS. The electrical potentials of the temporal and masseter muscles in children with DS were significantly lower compared to the corresponding parameters for healthy children when clenching.

Highlights

Down syndrome (DS) is a chromosomal disease caused by trisomy 21 that is usually accompanied by mental impairment, several comorbidities, and psychosocial limitations [1,2,3]
This study provided an electromyographical analysis of masticatory muscle function in subjects diagnosed with a particular congenital anomaly, namely down syndrome
Our experiment reveals that the EMG potentials of the temporal and masseter muscles in the down syndrome (DS) group were much lower when clenching and this may indicate masticatory muscle hypofunction in DS children through surface electromyography (sEMG) recordings

Summary

Introduction

Published: January 2022Down syndrome (DS) is a chromosomal disease caused by trisomy that is usually accompanied by mental impairment, several comorbidities, and psychosocial limitations [1,2,3].This genetic abnormality is characterized by variability in cognitive development and individual physical features causing unique health conditions, such as congenital heart disease, craniofacial dysmorphia, muscle hypotonia, gastrointestinal, hands-feet, renal and urogenital deformations, sleep breathing disorders including obstructive sleep apnoea, leukaemia, immune system alterations, premature dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and others [4].One of the most common manifestations observed in patients with DS is the generalized muscular hypotonia, especially regarding the masticatory and oropharyngeal muscles, resulting in difficulties when speaking, swallowing, and mastication [1,5]. Down syndrome (DS) is a chromosomal disease caused by trisomy 21 that is usually accompanied by mental impairment, several comorbidities, and psychosocial limitations [1,2,3]. This genetic abnormality is characterized by variability in cognitive development and individual physical features causing unique health conditions, such as congenital heart disease, craniofacial dysmorphia, muscle hypotonia, gastrointestinal, hands-feet, renal and urogenital deformations, sleep breathing disorders including obstructive sleep apnoea, leukaemia, immune system alterations, premature dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and others [4]. The most common dental and occlusal disorders in individuals with DS are open bite, crossbite, Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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