Monitoring the state of the occlusion--gnathosonics can be reliable

Monitoring the state of the occlusion should include records that can be compared. Gnathosonics has not become generally accepted as an everyday method of assessing the quality of the occlusion. It is suggested that this may be due to inconsistencies in the results obtained by various workers in the field. It is further suggested that such inconsistencies could be due to the manner of data gathering in the areas of equipment, transfer of data from the patient and interpretation of the records. A reliable method of data gathering using accelerometers is suggested and, taking account of the complexities of sound transmission through the skull, concludes that the overall envelope of the sounds produced by the occlusion of the teeth is more informative that the actual frequencies generated. Ways in which gnathosonics could be placed on a scientific footing and areas where further investigation might be useful are suggested. Gnathosonics, properly controlled, can provide a simple, quick and reliable method of making permanent records of occlusal sounds for comparison and assessment of stability or change in the state of the occlusion.