The silent period duration of the masticatory muscles

This study was conducted to determine whether the reflex activity of the masticatory muscles is altered in prostheses wearers. The electromyographic silent period was measured on an oscilloscope screen. Thirty subjects were examined. Five subjects had natural dentitions. Twenty-five partially edentulous subjects wore removable prostheses. The silent period duration reached 18 to 21 ms on the masseter muscles and 20 to 22 ms on the temporal muscles. These values were not significantly different for subjects with and without teeth and in the control group. The duration of the silent period was the same for patients wearing prostheses and for subjects with natural teeth. This finding suggests that wearing a prosthesis does not change the normal activity of the masticatory muscles.