Abstract
Objective To test the inter- and intraexaminer reliability of a recently developed instrument for measuring the maximum bite force (MBF). Material and Methods. Sixty patients who were clinically confirmed as having Oral Submucous Fibrosis (OSMF) and 60 healthy controls were included in this study. For each subject, age, gender, weight, height, and body mass index (BMI) were recorded. The maximum bite force was recorded in alternate order with a bite force sensor (D1) and an occlusal force meter (D2). Bite force was measured in the first molar region. Pearson's correlation coefficient and kappa statistic were applied to assess the reliability between D1 and D2 in the assessment of maximum bite force. The independent t-test was performed to find the statistical significance between the two study groups. The paired t-test was applied to find out the difference between the right and left disease in groups of two devices separately. The one-way analysis of covariance (ANOVA) was performed to find the significant difference between grades of OSMF. Results The results of the kappa values were 0.8531 ± 0.0724 and 0.7336 ± 0.0737 for interdevice reliability in OSMF patients in right and left sides. Similar findings were obtained in right and left sides of healthy individuals (0.7549 ± 0.0816 and 0.9440 ± 0.0806) and in the total sample (0.8132 ± 0.0544 and 0.8303 ± 0.0538). Pearson's correlation coefficient between two devices revealed a high and significant positive correlation between D1 and D2 separately and in the whole sample. Conclusion The observations of the present study suggest that the bite force sensor can be used as a reliable device for measuring bite force.
Highlights
Bite force is one of the indices of the functional state of the masticatory complex resulting from the activity of jaw muscles
The enormous difference in bite force values banks on various circumstances pertinent to the anatomical and physiologic attributes of the subjects. Ancillary to these biological components, mechanical elements composed of various recording devices, location of recording devices in the maxillary or mandibular arch, unilateral or bilateral measurements with the aid of acrylic splints, and wide opening of the mouth were emphasized as factors influencing the bite force [3]
The inclusion criteria considered in the selection of the participant are as follows: angle class I molar relationship without an anterior or posterior crossbite or open bite; class 1 facial profile and normal facial height and no history of orthodontic therapy; no missing teeth in the molar region; no pain related to the molars; no heavily restored teeth in the molar region; no gingival inflammation, no periodontal pathology, and absence of mobility of the teeth; and no reported systemic disease or apparent facial asymmetry that could influence the registration of bite force
Summary
Bite force is one of the indices of the functional state of the masticatory complex resulting from the activity of jaw muscles. Data in the literature accentuates significant factors that influence bite force measurements, like age, sex, body mass index, craniofacial morphology, occlusion, periodontal status of an individual, temporomandibular disorders and pain, and dentition status [2]. The enormous difference in bite force values banks on various circumstances pertinent to the anatomical and physiologic attributes of the subjects. Ancillary to these biological components, mechanical elements composed of various recording devices, location of recording devices in the maxillary or mandibular arch, unilateral or bilateral measurements with the aid of acrylic splints, and wide opening of the mouth were emphasized as factors influencing the bite force [3]. Various researchers noted a varying spectrum of maximal bite force values in different studies [1, 4]
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