Electromyographic activity and thickness of masticatory muscles in children with unilateral posterior crossbite

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the electromyographic (EMG) activity and thickness of the masseter and anterior temporalis muscles in children with unilateral posterior crossbite (PCB). Thirty-six children (22 boys, 14 girls, and mean age of 8.8 +/- 1.1 years) were divided into the following groups: The case group with 20 PCB patients (10 on the left side, 10 on the right side); the control group with 16 normal occlusion (NOccl) subjects. EMG activity was recorded with bipolar surface electrodes at rest and during maximal clenching. The muscle thickness was measured with real-time ultrasound. Data were compared between groups and between sides. The correlation between EMG activity and muscle thickness was also evaluated. The data were analyzed using the Shapiro-Wilks test, Pearson's correlation and Spearman as appropriate, paired and unpaired t- test, and Mann-Whitney test. The results revealed that the masseter of the crossbite side was more active than that of the non-crossbite side in PCB group during maximal clenching. The comparisons of EMG activity between PCB and NOccl groups revealed some variability in the results, depending on the crossbite side. The ultrasonographic evaluation did not show statistically significant differences between groups, nor between sides in the PCB and NOccl groups. Significant correlation between EMG activity and thickness was observed only in the left masseter in the NOccl group. In conclusion, these findings showed that asymmetric muscle activity of the masticatory muscles was not related to the thickness of these muscles in children with PCB.

Continuous monitoring of electromyography (EMG), mechanomyography (MMG), sonomyography (SMG) and torque output during ramp and step isometric contractions

“…It has also been suggested that ultrasound parameters may characterize muscular pain, injury and dysfunction [48][49][50][51][52]. Moreover, ultrasonography has been used along with EMG to provide more comprehensive information about the activities and properties of skeletal muscles [53][54][55][56][57]. We have recently proposed using the real-time muscle morphological change detected by ultrasound, namely sonomyography (SMG), for the prosthetic control [58,59] and for assessment of isometric muscle contraction [60][61][62] and isotonic contraction [63,64].…”

Proposal of surface electromyography signal acquisition protocols for masseter and temporalis muscles

“…During marking and palpation, the soft tissue may undergo slight displacement, in the order of a few millimeters, depending on the direction of finger pressure applied to the skin. The use of palpation during muscle contraction (Arat et al, 2008), zygomatic arch (Andrade et al, 2009) and gonial angle have already been referred by other studies (Andrade et al, 2009;Garcia-Morales et al, 2003;Leung and Hägg, 2001), however, in less detail than the exposed in this manuscript. The scalp boundary limits the placement of surface electrodes over AT muscle, as reported in previous studies (Andrade et al, 2009).…”

Associations between orbicularis oris thickness and skeletal and dental variables in mixed dentition

“…Muscle dimension determination by ultrasonography has been used as a parameter of muscle form and function in many studies [9][10][11]14,15 , and, interestingly, facial features are usually studied in profile. In this study, the relationship between hard and soft tissue cephalometric variables was investigated and correlated with the orbicular oris thickness at rest and in the contracted state in subjects with Class I and Class II malocclusion.…”