title: Influence of vertical dimension of occlusion changes on the electroencephalograms of complete denture wearers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The present study was conducted to identify how changes in the vertical dimension of occlusion (VDO) affect the sensory perception and activity of the brain in complete denture wearers using an electroencephalogram (EEG).
  
  
  METHODS
  Subjects were 21 individuals wearing complete dentures who regularly visited the Division of Prosthodontics at Tsurumi University Dental Hospital for checkups (12 males and 9 females, average age: 76.6). Based on their original dentures, two duplicate dentures with different VDO (-3mm and +5mm) were fabricated. EEG activity and occlusal force were measured before and after gum chewing with each denture in all subjects. Negative indicator scores for psychological conditions and stable neuronal activity (Dα) were calculated using EEG data. Statistical analysis was performed using the Wilcoxon test to compare changes in the sensory perception, activity of the brain, and occlusal force (α=0.05).
  
  
  RESULTS
  After gum chewing with the +5-mm denture, a significant increase was observed in the negative indicator score (p<0.05). No significant difference was found in the Dα values before and after gum chewing with any of the dentures (p>0.05). A significant decrease was observed in the occlusal force between the original denture and the -3-mm denture (p<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Psychological condition and occlusal force were influenced by immediate changes in the VDO of the complete denture.
authors.affiliation: Department of Removable Prosthodontics, Tsurumi University of Dental Medicine, 2-1-3 Tsurumi, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-8501, Japan. Electronic address: matsuda-risa@tsurumi-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Risa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Matsuda
authors.affiliation: Department of Removable Prosthodontics, Tsurumi University of Dental Medicine, 2-1-3 Tsurumi, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-8501, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshikazu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yoneyama
authors.affiliation: Department of Removable Prosthodontics, Tsurumi University of Dental Medicine, 2-1-3 Tsurumi, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-8501, Japan.
authors.forename: Masakazu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Morokuma
authors.affiliation: Department of Removable Prosthodontics, Tsurumi University of Dental Medicine, 2-1-3 Tsurumi, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-8501, Japan.
authors.forename: Chikahiro
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ohkubo
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001732:Bite Force; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D003824:Denture, Complete / Q000523:psychology; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008409:Mastication / Q000502:physiology; D009066:Mouth, Edentulous / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D012677:Sensation / Q000502:physiology; D014716:Vertical Dimension
keywords: Complete denture; Edentulous; Electroencephalogram; Vertical dimension of occlusion