Effects of chewing frequency and bolus hardness on human incisor trajectory and masseter muscle activity

Nine adults with no orofacial dysfunctions were instructed to chew a standardized piece of soft or hard gum on the right side in time with a metronome set at 46, 100 or 160 beats/min. Jaw movements were recorded with a Myotronics kinesiograph and masseter electromyograms were detected with surface electrodes. The chewing patterns on either gum were not significantly different in any of their spatial or temporal aspects, in mean or peak opening or closing velocities, or in the timing or level of activity in either masseter at any of the three chewing frequencies. These findings suggest that during metronome-paced chewing the change in sensory feedback resulting from a change in gum hardness exerts little or no effect on either the spatial or temporal aspects of masticatory motor output.