Occlusal acuity and bite force in young adults

Occlusal tactile acuity (OTA) and bite force are essential components of the sensorimotor control of oral behaviors. While these variables have been studied independently, it has not yet been revealed whether compressive force impacts the occlusal perception mediated by the mechanoreceptive afferents in the periodontal ligament. The present study examined the effect of repetition and maximum bite force on OTA by testing nine aluminum foils of different thicknesses together with a sham test with no foil, three times each, in randomized order in 36 healthy individuals. In addition, the 40 μm foil was tested three more times at the start of each session to evaluate possible short-term effects. This test session was repeated with and without an interspersed maximum bite force task in between. The results demonstrated that repeated measurements increased OTA significantly (p = 0.033); a change mainly driven by the 40 μm thickness, whereas maximum bite force tests did not affect OTA (p = 0.097). Collectively, the results suggest that the enhanced OTA may be attributed to repetition-mediated learning and neuroplasticity within the pathways related to OTA. Furthermore, the compressive bite force may have induced a short-term change that lasted seconds and was not detected by the subsequent OTA measurements or may have altogether inhibited the facilitatory effect of repeated OTA. This underscores the potential for future research to explore the implications of compressive force and pain on OTA in patient populations, which could provide valuable insights into the adaptive mechanisms of the sensorimotor system in pathological conditions.