Occlusal Treatment Based Chewing Movement

Abstract

With recent progress in the development of medical devices, functional movements of the mandible chewing can be examined easily, even in daily clinical conditions. When the author studied gnathology several years ago, patients were treated using articulators, though that method could not be utilized in all cases. One of the major reasons is because of varying masticatory processes in patients and the rigid function of the articulator. In actual mastication, chewing is not performed by border movement and chewing movements follow a track that is different from that of border movement. Thus, chewing movements are greatly affected by occlusal table morphology.
In the present study, problems of occlusal analysis were investigated by reviewing cases that had undergone treatment mainly with an articulator when images of mandibular movement during actual chewing movements were not available. In addition, occlusal treatment procedures used in a comprehensive dental clinical practice are presented.