Article

An innovative electromyographic test for use in the early diagnosis of scoliosis in school-age children

Authors:
To read the full-text of this research, you can request a copy directly from the authors.

Abstract

The authors suggest the use of an innovative electromyographic (EMG) test to screen school age children for scoliosis at an early stage of the development of this condition by determining percentage differences between the muscular activity measured in corresponding paravertebral muscles. This test can be used to diagnose both postural and structural scoliosis. It can be performed at school and is a non-invasive low-cost test. Accordingly, the authors recommend its use within the framework of school age preventive medicine programmes.

No full-text available

Request Full-text Paper PDF

To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the authors.

... The results revealed that modifying the sole pressure distribution in the anterior and posterior parts of the foot by applying cotton rolls between the opposing teeth to create a dental malocclusion may influence body posture [22]. This is because the mechanoreceptors of the tendons of the muscles governing the plantar arch configura-tion are stimulated in different ways during the activation of long osteo-arthro-muscular chains [23]. ...
Article
Full-text available
Background: All body systems involved in ensuring a healthy posture (musculoskeletal system, oculomotor, oto-vestibular and occluso-cranial-mandibular) are essential in maintaining postural balance. Research question: Does experimental malocclusion in subjects in static position determine variations in plantar pressure? Methods: Overall, 31 subjects were included in the study. The plantar pressure was evaluated in five different points: lateral and medial heel, midfoot, 1st and 5th metatarsal area. Using a specially designed splint, an artificial malocclusion was induced on the right hemimandibular arch. The pressure was measured at 0 (T0), 15 (T1) and 30 min (T2) after splint application. Results: The right external plantar sensors recorded statistically significant differences in pressure values after 15 min of splint wear (5th metatarsal area, p = 0.05; midfoot, p = 0.04). Important pressure values were also recorded by the left internal plantar sensors (1st metatarsal, p = 0.01; medial heel, p = 0.006), after 30 min of splint wear. Conclusions: Asymmetrical experimental malocclusion produces early changes in plantar pressure, a proof of compensatory mechanisms induced by secondary postural imbalance.
Article
Full-text available
Postural alterations of the shoulders, dorsal spine and hips could have an influence on the development of craniomandibular dysfunctions. To study the influence of body posture on the prevalence of craniomandibular dysfunction. One hundred thirty six dental students and 41 patients assisting to the temporomandibular joints (TMJ) clinic at the Freie Universität at Berlin, were studied. Masticator, cervical muscles, temporomandibular joints and occlusions were clinically examined. The position of shoulders and hips was measured with the use of an acromiopelvimeter. No relationship was found between postural alterations of the hips and shoulders, articular noises and sensibility or pain while palpating the temporomandibular joints. Among students, a relationship between postural alterations of the shoulders and the sensibility or pain while palpating the TMJ, was observed. When all muscles were considered, a significant relationship between asymmetric shoulders or hips and muscular pain while palpating was observed among students. Some symptoms, especially muscular sensibility is more pronounced in people with hip and shoulder asymmetries. This relation is more pronounced in dental students than in patients.
Article
Full-text available
The present study examined the associations between craniofacial dimensions, head posture, bite force, and symptoms and signs of temporomandibular disorders (TMD). The sample comprised 96 children (51F, 45M) aged 7-13 years, sequentially admitted for orthodontic treatment of malocclusions entailing health risks. Symptoms and signs of TMD were assessed by 37 variables describing the occurrence of headache and facial pain, clicking, jaw mobility, tenderness of muscles and joints, and the Helkimo Anamnestic and Dysfunction indices. Craniofacial dimensions (33 variables), and head and cervical posture (nine variables) were recorded from lateral cephalometric radiographs taken with the subject standing with the head in a standardized posture (mirror position). Dental arch widths were measured on plaster casts and bite force was measured at the first molars on each side by means of a pressure transducer. Associations were assessed by Spearman correlations and multiple stepwise logistic regression analyses. The magnitudes of the significant associations were generally low to moderate. On average, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction was seen in connection with a marked forward inclination of the upper cervical spine and an increased craniocervical angulation, but no firm conclusion could be made regarding any particular craniofacial morphology in children with symptoms and signs of TMJ dysfunction. Muscle tenderness was associated with a 'long face' type of craniofacial morphology and a lower bite force. Headache was associated with a larger maxillary length and increased maxillary prognathism. A high score on Helkimo's Clinical Dysfunction Index was associated with smaller values of a number of vertical, horizontal, and transversal linear craniofacial dimensions and a lower bite force.
Article
Background: Postural alterations of the shoulders, dorsal spine and hips could have an influence on the development of craniomandibular dysfunctions. Aim: To study the influence of body posture on the prevalence of craniomandibular dysfunction. Subjects and methods: One hundred thirty six dental students and 41 patients assisting to the temporomandibular joints (TMJ) clinic at the Freie Universitat at Berlin, were studied. Masticator, cervical muscles, temporomandibular joints and occlusions were clinically examined. The position of shoulders and hips was measured with the use of an acromiopelvimeter. Results: No relationship was found between postural alterations of the hips and shoulders, articular noises and sensibility or pain while palpating the temporomandibular joints. Among students, a relationship between postural alterations of the shoulders and the sensibility or pain while palpating the TMJ, was observed. When all muscles were considered, a significant relationship between asymmetric shoulders or hips and muscular pain while palpating was observed among students. Conclusions: Some symptoms, especially muscular sensibility is more pronounced in people with hip and shoulder asymmetries. This relation is more pronounced in dental students than in patients (AU)
Article
Abnormal cervical muscle function can cause abnormal head posture, adversely affecting the development and morphology of the cervical spine and maxillofacial skeleton, which in turn leads to facial asymmetry and occlusal abnormality. There can be morphologic abnormalities of the mandibular fossa, condyle, ramus, and disk accompanying the imbalance of the cervical and masticatory muscles activities. Two normally growing Japanese female patients with Class II Division 1 malocclusion presented with TMJ symptoms and poor head posture as a result of abnormal sternocleidomastoid and trapezius cervical muscle activities. One patient underwent tenotomy of the two heads of the sternocleidomastoid muscle and the other patient did not. In addition to orthodontics, the 2 patients received physiotherapy of the cervical muscles during treatment. Both were treated with a functional appliance as a first step, followed by full multi-bracketed treatment to establish a stable form of occlusion and to improve facial esthetics with no head gear. This interdisciplinary treatment approach resulted in normalization of stomatognathic function, elimination of TMJ symptoms, and improvement of facial esthetics. In the growing patients, the significant response of the fossa, condyle, and ramus on the affected side during and after occlusal correction contributed to the improvement of cervical muscle activity. Based on the result, early occlusal improvement, combined with orthopedic surgery of the neck muscles or physiotherapy to achieve muscular balance of the neck and masticatory muscles, was found to be effective. Two patients illustrate the potential for promoting symmetric formation of the TMJ structures and normal jaw function, with favorable effects on posttreatment growth of the entire maxillofacial skeleton.
Article
Repercussion of dental occlusion was tested upon postural and gaze stabilization, the latter with a visuo-motor task evaluated by shooting performances. Eighteen permit holders shooters and 18 controls were enrolled in this study. Postural control was evaluated in both groups according to four mandibular positions imposed by interocclusal splints: (i) intercuspal occlusion (IO), (ii) centric relation (CR), (iii) physiological side lateral occlusion and (iv) controlateral occlusion, in order to appreciate the impact of the splints upon orthostatism. Postural control and gaze stabilization quality decreased, from the best to the worst, with splints in CR, IO and lateral occlusion. In shooters, the improvement in postural control was parallel to superior shooting performance. A repercussion of dental occlusion upon proprioception and visual stabilization is suggested by these data.
Article
A well established premise in the field of craniomandibular and cervical spine orthopedics is that forward head posture (FHP) adversely affects mandibular position and therefore dental occlusion. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of FHP on the initial occlusal contact pattern (IOCP) in order to provide further clarification on this important topic. Thirty-nine healthy subjects, 10-74 years old, underwent a series of tests in which the IOCP was recorded in four different head positions using the T-Scan Occlusal Diagnostic System. Three tests each were performed in military posture (MP), natural sitting posture (NP), FHP, and maximal forward head posture (MFHP) for a total of twelve trials. A repeated measures analysis of variance failed to demonstrate a correlation between FHP and IOCP; however, a multiple linear regression analysis revealed a relationship between age and the IOCP. This study raises questions about the relationship between FHP and occlusion.
Article
The objective of this study was to assess the relationships among the posture, the maxillomandibular denture complex, and the soft-tissue profile of aesthetic adult Korean women. From an initial group of 346 women, the authors examined 28 beautiful adult Korean women who had normal vertical and sagittal skeletal relationships and normal occlusion. There were no differences in the inclinations of the incisors to the occlusal planes in the maxilla and the mandible in the data for Korean women vs. Arnett's data for white women. However, the overbite and overjet in Korean women were slightly smaller than in white women. AB to maxillary occlusal plane angle (MxOP) represented the anteroposterior denture base discrepancy to the occlusal plane. Angulation of the maxillary occlusal plane to the Frankfurt (FH) plane and the true vertical line at submasale (TVL) (Sn) was a little steeper in Korean women than in white women. The FH plane was almost parallel to the true horizontal line in Korean women who had normal vertical and sagittal skeletal relationships and normal occlusion. With regard to soft-tissue variables, the upper lip length (Sn-Stms), interlabial gap, upper incisor exposure, nasolabial angle, lip and nose tip projection value, and TVL (Sn)-to-upper lip line (UL) angle showed interracial differences. The results of this study can assist in the diagnosis and treatment planning of orthognathic surgery.
Article
The Authors carried out an experimental study on a homogeneous group of young people to provide evidence of functional correlation among masticatory muscles and, indirectly, between changes to the interdental occlusal plane and modifications of the plantar arches due to talipes valgus and flat foot. In the two analysed conditions, the masticatory muscles undergo different functional alterations. This is due to the fact that the mechanoreceptors in the tendons of the muscles governing the plantar arch configuration are stimulated in different ways during the activation of long osteoarthromuscular chains. Dental specialists will have to take these correlation into account when diagnosing TMJ disorders.
Edition Frision-Roche
  • L Busquet
  • Les Chaines Musculaires
Busquet L, Les Chaines Musculaires. Edition Frision-Roche, Paris (1992).
  • B Bricot
  • Posturale Globale
Bricot B, La Riprogrammazione Posturale Globale. Ed. Statipro, Marsiglia (1998).