Abstract
Although there are many studies on bruxism. There is controversy regarding its the epidemiology, mechanism, and treatment. This article summarizes the published experimental and observational studies on bruxism to clarify what is understood to date and to propose the future direction of studies on this issue.
Firstly, bruxism is discussed in relation to the symptoms of temporomandibular disorders, such as masticatory muscle pain and headache, and tooth wear. Secondly, the papers on epidemiology, measuring methods and treatments of bruxism were reviewed. Finally, our studies on “the evaluation of the day to day variation of nocturnal masseter muscle activity” and “the effect of occlusal splint designs on nocturnal masticatory muscle activity” were introduced.
One of the major reasons of controversy is due to the variation of the criteria for bruxers among the studies reviewed. It is also clear that there is a fluctuation in the bruxism activity from night to night, and it may even change in accordance with the stress on measurement. Another reason is due to the difficulty in recording reliable data. It is not easy to record the nocturnal activity of the human subject under a natural environment, and it requires a long period of time for both recording and analysis. Therefore it is necessary to pay attention to the above mentioned issues throughout the study period.
