[The load carrying capacity of the teeth of the human jaw]

Three different methods of measurement are used to objectify the maximum load-carrying capacity of individual pairs of teeth. For these, use is made of a mechanical, electric, and elastooptic measuring instrument. The measurement results obtained using the mechanical and electric instruments are largely identical. They are in the neighborhood of 20 kgf and 50 kgf for incisors and molars, respectively, of male subjects. The results obtained for female test subjects were lower by an average of 10 kgf. The mechanical and electric measuring instruments may be used for the examination of a larger number of test subjects as well as under pathological conditions.