Correlative study of pain perception and masticatory muscle reflexes in man

An attempt was made to explore the possibility of using the masticatory muscle reflexes as pain indices in human subjects. It was found that the digastric reflex, so readily evoked by electrodental stimulation in experimental animals, could not be consistently elicited in man. The reflex silent period of the masseteric muscles, on the other hand, may be used as a pain index for evaluating dental analgesia, provided that analgesic interference is anticipated at points along the reflex arc.