Endo's stress analysis of the primate skull and the functional significance of the supraorbital region.
A review of Endo's experimental and theoretical procedures and data indicates that the magnitude of the principal strains in the glabella region of both humans and gorillas are low as compared to other parts of the face. Therefore, his data do not provide support for the hypothesis that the glabella region is a highly stressed region during biting. In addition, increased levels of strain in the supraorbital region are directly related to increased levels of masticatory muscle and reaction forces, and not necessarily to anterior tooth loading as opposed to posterior tooth loading. His data also indicate that the supraorbital region in extant humans cannot be accurately modeled as a beam. These conclusions either differ from those of Endo or are not clearly presented or emphasized throughout any of Endo's papers. Therefore, we suggest that a number of investigators have made unsupported or erroneous conclusions based on Endo's work. This is particularly true for those studies that have emphasized the existence of powerful bending stress in the glabella region during incisor biting in both humans and non-human primates.
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Department of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710.
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D000818:Animals; D001732:Bite Force; D006801:Humans; D008409:Mastication; D008954:Models, Biological; D011323:Primates / Q000502:physiology*; D012886:Skull / Q000502:physiology*; D013314:Stress, Mechanical