Postural Perturbations Tracing to the Stomatognathic System

Conditions

• Posture

Eligibility Criteria

Sex

ALL

Age

30 Years - 65 Years

Healthy Volunteers

Not accepted

Interventions

• Dental splints — OTHER
  Each participant will receive six custom-made dental splints to incrementally increase their VDO. These splints will alter the VDO in increments from 5 to 30 mm, specifically: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 mm.
• Dentures — OTHER
  Participants in this group will participate in balance and gait testing both with and without their dentures to examine how the presence or absence of dentures affects postural stability and movement.

Study Details

A connection of the stomatognathic system \[an anatomical system comprising the teeth, jaws, and associated soft tissues\] to postural control has been suggested in the literature. This research will investigate how occlusion can impact postural response, disorder, and rehabilitation by examining how modifications in the vertical dimension of occlusion (VDO) influence balance and gait. Although it is currently unclear which or how restorative approaches cause postural disturbances, changes in several occlusal factors, i.e. VDO, Angle's class, crossbite and others have been suggested to manifest clearly into an altered stability, which could have a significant effect on the quality of life, especially in the elderly. The present study aims to identify the degree to which specific interventions in oral cavity affect the stability and gait patterns of patients, This will b achieved by either: * The use of dental splints (fully certified devices) * The use of the subjects' own dentures A direct correlation of postural perturbations and VDO, would essentially void the necessity to evaluate specific interventions (e.g. different types of restorations) independently and allow clinicians to assess a potential effect on their patients' stability and gait based on pre- to post- treatment VDO.

Key Dates

Start date

Nov 17, 2025

Status verified

Dec 2025

Primary completion

Jun 30, 2027

Completion

Jun 30, 2027

Study Design

Enrollment

40 participants (estimated)

Allocation

NON_RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

PARALLEL

Primary purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Arms

• Active Comparator: Group A- dental splints
  Participants in this group will be adults aged 30-45 with complete dentition and Class I malocclusion. Participants must have a complete set of teeth, either natural or with crowns, ensuring no teeth are missing.
• Active Comparator: Group B- dentures
  Participants in this group will be older adults aged 50-65 who are edentulous (without natural teeth) and wear full dentures.

Primary Outcome Measure

Center of pressure [ Time Frame: 60-90 minutes ]

Central Contacts

• Alexandros Tsouknidas, PhD
  617-358-8777
  [email protected]

Locations (1)

Find similar trials in Boston, MA