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. 2022 Sep 18;58(9):1303.
doi: 10.3390/medicina58091303.

Influence of the Text Neck Posture on the Static Dental Occlusion

Eniko Tunde Stoica  1   2 , Corina Marcauteanu  1   2 , Anca Tudor  2   3 , Virgil-Florin Duma  4   5 , Elena Constanta Amaricai  3   6 , Roxana Onofrei  6 , Oana Suciu  6 , Meda Lavinia Negrutiu  2 , Cosmin Sinescu  2   3
Affiliations

Influence of the Text Neck Posture on the Static Dental Occlusion

Eniko Tunde Stoica et al. Medicina (Kaunas). .

Abstract

Background and Objectives: The excessive use of smartphones for various tasks led to a new adverse postural phenomenon called text neck. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the text neck posture (TNP) on static occlusion by using the T-Scan III occlusal diagnostic system. Materials and Methods: Nineteen subjects (aged 20 to 24 years) were considered for this research. They had normal values for anterior overbite and overjet, Angle Class I occlusion, no posterior crossbite, and no signs or symptoms of cervical or temporo-mandibular disorders. Occlusal registrations were performed with the T-Scan III system in a normal, neutral head posture (NHP), as well as in the TNP. The investigated parameters were: occlusion time (OT), asymmetry index of the occlusal force (AOF), percent of the maximum movie force (%MMF), and the time elapsed from the last occlusal contact until the maximum intercuspation (MAT-OTB). The last three parameters were analyzed in the maximum area frame (MA) of the registrations. For the statistical analysis of the recorded data, the Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test and the Spearman's correlation coefficient were used. Results: The following values were obtained in NHP and in TNP: for AOF, 14.88 ± 10.39% and 18.04 ± 12.83%, respectively; for OT, 1.34 ± 1.84 s and 1.32 ± 1.8 s, respectively; for the %MMF, 97.5 ± 2.83% and 96.31 ± 3.17%, respectively; for MAT-OTB, 2.08 ± 1.82 s and 1.45 ± 2.3 s, respectively. There were no statistically significant differences between the static occlusal parameters measured in NHP and those in TNP. However, the high values of the AOF and OT in NHP revealed an imbalance of the occlusal force distribution between the right and left side in maximum intercuspation (MI), as well as a lack of simultaneity of static occlusal contacts. Furthermore, there was a significant, direct, and strong correlation between OT and AOF in NHP. Conclusions: The NHP should not be used as the starting position in TNP simulations in T-Scan studies, so as to avoid statistically insignificant differences between static occlusion in NHP and TNP. The healthy standing subjects, with normal occlusal relationships from the clinical point of view, revealed an occlusal instability in NHP when examined with the T-Scan.

Keywords: T-Scan III system; asymmetry index of the occlusal force (AOF); maximum intercuspation (MI); occlusion time (OT); static occlusion; text neck posture (TNP).

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(a) Forward head posture (FHP), which is sometimes called the desktop neck posture; (b) text neck posture (TNP)—examples given by one of the examiners in the study.
Figure 2
Figure 2
(a) Measurement of the neck flexion angle with a manual goniometer in NHP; (b) T-Scan registration in NHP.
Figure 3
Figure 3
(a) Measurement of the neck flexion angle with a manual goniometer in TNP; (b) T-Scan registration in TNP.
Figure 4
Figure 4
MA frame of the T-Scan registration of MC subject in NHP: (a) two-dimensional (2D) view with the distribution of the occlusal force between the left and the right side of the arch; (b) graph of the % of the total force in time, with %MMF, OT, OTB, and MAT (0.7 s).
Figure 5
Figure 5
MA frame of the T-Scan registration of MC subject in TNP: (a) 2D view with the distribution of the occlusal force between the left and the right side of the arch; (b) graph of the % of the total force in time, with %MMF, OT, OTB, and MAT (1.25 s).
Figure 6
Figure 6
The graph that illustrates the direct correlation between OT and AOF in NHP.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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