Abstract
Background: Masticatory muscle thickness provides objective measurements of the temporomandibular motor function, which may change in patients with oral myofascial pain. Moreover, they are considered as being part of the craniocervical unit by a crucial relationship with cervical muscles and their fasciae. In this study, we aimed to assess by ultrasound (US) imaging the fasciae of the masseter, temporal, and sternocleidomastoid muscles to understand their mean thickness and eventual variation in relationship with the muscles, sides, and sex.Methods: We studied 16 healthy volunteers without temporomandibular joint dysfunction. Concerning each subject were evaluated the range of motion of the temporomandibular joint and of the neck, the thickness of muscles and their fasciae of both sides, and the delta of muscle thickness.Results: All the motor evaluations of the subjects showed normal ranges. The US results showed that the fasciae have a mean thickness of 0.50 ± 0.1 mm, which did not change during muscle contraction. The evaluated muscles presented a symmetry between right and left (p > 0.05), even if the delta of muscle (US) thickness had a huge range between different subjects, for example in the masseter muscle from 0.7 to 4.2 mm.Conclusions: Ultrasound imaging is a suitable and reliable tool to study the muscles and fasciae of the head and neck region, permitting also the evaluation of the ability of the muscles to contract. Finally, identifying functional asymmetry that could become symptomatic, US imaging could allow an early rehabilitation treatment.
Highlights
The masticatory muscles have a crucial role in the control of the position and motion of the mandible, creating forces at the teeth and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) [1]
Participants were eligible for the study if they met the following criteria: not experience for: oral myofascial pain, temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD), sleep bruxism, cervical pain, history of facial trauma, any pain, or restrictions in terms of mandibular movement, open bite or a crossbite, a prominent facial asymmetry
This study demonstrated that these fasciae are visualized appearing as linear, hyperechogenic layers [18], but with topographic peculiarities, which means that each muscular fascia has its proper mean thickness (p < 0.001), and we cannot generalize the data
Summary
The masticatory muscles have a crucial role in the control of the position and motion of the mandible, creating forces at the teeth and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) [1]. The TMJ disorders are intricate dysfunctions involving the masticatory muscles and TMJ. The etiology of this dysfunction is usually imputed to a parafunctional activity in the stomatognathic system [2]. Masticatory muscle thickness provides objective measurements of the temporomandibular motor function, which may change in patients with oral myofascial pain. They are considered as being part of the craniocervical unit by a crucial relationship with cervical muscles and their fasciae. We aimed to assess by ultrasound (US) imaging the fasciae of the masseter, temporal, and sternocleidomastoid muscles to understand their mean thickness and eventual variation in relationship with the muscles, sides, and sex
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