Bite-raising splints to treat deep bite in pediatric patients: An electromyographic and kinesiographic assessment

Backgroundː Deep overbite or deep bite is common in the pediatric population. Although bite-raising splints are often a part of treatment programs for deep bite malocclusion, there are no reports in the literature regarding their effect on the human neuromuscular system, especially during developmental age. The current study aimed to use electromyographic and kinesiographic analysis to investigate if and how bite-raising splints applied during early stages of orthodontic treatment affect muscle tone, muscle activity, mandibular kinetics, and Freeway Space (FWS) in pediatric patients with dental and skeletal deep bite. Methodsː Thirty patients (17 males & 13 females, mixed dentition, ages 6 to 13; mean age 9.2 ± 2.05) with complete traumatic, skeletal, and dental deep overbite were fitted for bite-raising splints for 4 weeks and underwent electromyographic and kinesiographic examination before and 4 weeks after the application of bite-raising splints. Resultsː Evidence of general reduction in activity levels in the bilateral masseter and temporalis muscles was found. Although maximum mouth opening was narrower and mandibular deviation during mouth opening movements was slightly increased, neither variation was statistically significant. Nor was there a significant difference related to mean muscular tone values. Surprisingly, a statistical difference in the amount of FWS was found (p < 0.05); kinesiographic limitations linked to the intrusion of molars can be considered as explanation. Conclusionsː Study findings indicated that bite-raising splints were not associated to statistically significant effects on muscle tone, muscle activity, or on mandibular kinetics.