title: Influence of the presence of Temporomandibular Disorders on postural balance in the elderly.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the influence of the presence of Temporomandibular Disorders (TMD) on postural balance in elderly individuals.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study sample consisted of 150 elderly: 103 women (67.7±5.0 years) and 47 men (69.3±5.5 years). Evaluation of the presence and severity of TMD included an anamnesis questionnaire, an evaluation of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), and a muscular examination, which allowed the division of the elderly into 2 groups: G1 (experimental, n=95), with TMD; G2 (control, n=55), without TMD. Postural balance was assessed by means of the one-leg stance test (OLST) on a force platform (BIOMEC400), thus permitting the following measurements: center of foot pressure (COP); mean sway velocity (MV) and frequency (MF) of COP in both the anteroposterior (VAP and FAP) and medial/lateral (VML and FML) directions. The statistical analysis of data was performed using independent t-test, Variance Analysis, and Chi Square test (α=5%).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Presence of TMD was observed in 63.3% of the individuals (Group 2), with different degrees of severity (mild: 42.7%, moderate: 14.7%, severe: 6%). Significantly higher TMD was observed for women (73.8%) compared with men (40.4%) (p=0.0002). No significant difference was found in between the groups for all balance parameters, e.g., presence and severity of TMD, presence of pain to palpation of TMJ and of masticatory and cervical muscles.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The presence and severity of TMD, in addition to the presence of pain to palpation of TMJ and masticatory and cervical muscles did not alter the variables related to postural balance in this population.
authors.affiliation: Universidade Norte do Paraná - UNOPAR - Londrina (PR), Brazil.
authors.forename: Paula Vanessa Pedron
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Oltramari-Navarro
authors.affiliation: Universidade Norte do Paraná - UNOPAR - Londrina (PR), Brazil.
authors.forename: Marjorie Takei
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Yoshie
authors.affiliation: Universidade Norte do Paraná - UNOPAR - Londrina (PR), Brazil.
authors.forename: Rubens Alexandre da
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.affiliation: Universidade do Sagrado Coração - USC - Bauru (SP), Brazil.
authors.forename: Ana Cláudia de Castro Ferreira
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Conti
authors.affiliation: Universidade Estadual de Maringá - UEM - Maringá (PR), Brazil.
authors.forename: Ricardo de Lima
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Navarro
authors.affiliation: Universidade Norte do Paraná - UNOPAR - Londrina (PR), Brazil.
authors.forename: Luciana Lozza do Moraes
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Marchiori
authors.affiliation: Universidade Norte do Paraná - UNOPAR - Londrina (PR), Brazil.|Instituto de Ensino, Pesquisa e Inovação - IEPI, Irmandade da Santa Casa de Londrina - ISCAL - Londrina (PR), Brazil.
authors.forename: Karen Barros Parron
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Fernandes
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008410:Masticatory Muscles / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004856:Postural Balance; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013704:Temporomandibular Joint / Q000503:physiopathology*; D013705:Temporomandibular Joint Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology*