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Updated: Aug 6, 2026
Experimental Methods to Study Human Postural Control
Published on: September 11, 2019
Occlusal conditions, postural control and plantar parameters in adults and growing subjects: a systematic review of
Isabel Carda-Navarro1, Ana Sanchez-Albero1, Clara Guinot-Barona1
1Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Catholic University of Valencia, San Vicente Martir, Valencia, Spain.
Objective:
To evaluate whether occlusal conditions are associated with global postural control and plantar parameters when assessed using objective posturographic and pressure-based methods, with particular attention to differences between adult populations and growing subjects.
Methods:
A systematic review was conducted following PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Searches were performed in PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Embase, CINAHL, and Web of Science up to October 2025. Observational and experimental studies in humans assessing occlusal conditions in relation to instrument-based postural or plantar outcomes were included. Study selection, data extraction, and risk of bias (JBI) were conducted independently by two reviewers. Due to heterogeneity, findings were synthesized qualitatively. Certainty of evidence was evaluated using GRADE.
Results:
Seven studies were included. Outcomes comprised center-of-pressure metrics, postural sway, weight distribution, plantar pressure patterns, and balance performance. In adults, findings were inconsistent: under natural static conditions one study found no association while another reported significant static differences, and the remaining positive findings emerged mainly under experimental or task-specific conditions. The two studies in growing subjects yielded conflicting results (one larger study largely null, one positive), so the evidence does not support a more consistent association in this subgroup. Risk of bias related mainly to confounding and participant selection, and certainty of evidence was low to very low.
Conclusions:
Current evidence does not support a consistent relationship between occlusal conditions and global postural control. The two studies in growing subjects yielded conflicting findings, and the small number of studies, methodological heterogeneity, and low to very low certainty of the evidence preclude establishing a pediatric association or drawing firm clinical inferences.
Systematic Review Registration:
https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=1266834, PROSPERO CRD420251266834.
