User:KAstaphan/sandbox

== History and Underlying science.

1. The International Center for Nutritional Research in and around 2000 published a series of internal papers entitled "The Best of Basal Facts"; The Journal that defined the Physiologic Approach to TMJ Problems".

2. The several papers in that comprehensive document covered a number of crucial concepts, such as: (a) the concept of Dental Distress, covered in depth by Aelred C. Fonder, page 65 and on. Fonder relates dental distress caused by misaligned TMJs to a number of things including bad posture. Fonder explores the relationship between an inefficient bite arising from misalignment, and the torque that can place on C1 and C@, and the dura mater, in turn affecting many other systems.

(b) the concept of the Quadrant Theory put forth beginning at page 93 by Casey Gusay, indicating a set of geometric rules that foster a most physiologic bite.

(c) While some others lay claim to inventing and introducing these concepts to sports dentistry, the fact an truth is that John Stenger, DDS, team dentist for the Notre Dame Football team in the 1960s. worked with football players who suffered from Mal-Occlusion, with resulting poor postural support. WHen that support was replaced by a properly fitted device, the athletes became superior performers and made All-American - pages 111 =>.

3. There has been a recent flourish, instigated initially by the now bankrupt PPM mouthguard Company and its insolvent founder, Anil Makkar, DDS, to lay claim to much of this. Makkar claims that all of this came to him in a flash of brilliance form treating a lobster fisherman in the early 2000s, some 40 years after Stenger.

4. Academic articles of late the support some of the earlier work include:

( a) A number of studies have suggested a relationship between the vertical position of the jaw and isometric strength of the upper extremities and cervical flexors (e.g Abdallah et al. "Affecting upper extremity strength by changing maxillomandibular vertical dimension in deep bite subjects", The Journal of Craniomandibular Practice (2004); 22: 268-275.

(b) Chelette, Tripp et al. concluded that a properly-fitted MORA "can be of assistance to some individuals during execution of the antiG straining manouver" in a study of active-duty military personnel - "Effects on G Tolerance while biting down on a ...(MORA), Oct. 1990, Harry G. Armstrong Aerospace Medical Research Laboratory.

(c) Quite importantly, Chafka et al. concluded that there is a vertical position, UNIQUE TO EACH INDIVIDUAL, which maximizes isometric strength, "The Effect of Stepwise Increases in Vertical Dimension of Occlusion on Isometric Strength of Cervical Flexors and Deltoid Muscles in Nonsymptomatic Females", The Journal of Craniomandibular Practice (2002), 20:264-273.

(d) Bracco and other researchers at the University of Torino in 2004 published the results of their research on the "Effects of different jaw relations on postural stability in human subjects", Neuroscience Letters 356 (2004), 228-230. They looked at the effect of three different jaw relations on body posture, and concluded that a "myocentric" (neuromuscular) position improved balance on the frontal plane more so than did the other two jaw relations.

(e) Forgione et al. concluded that a relationship does exist between bite and isometric strength, "Strength and bite, Part 2: testing isometric strength using a MORA to set a functional criterion", The Journal of Cranio-Mandibular Practice (1992); 10(1):13-20.

(f)Wang, Ueno, et al. found that maximum voluntary contraction during shoulder abduction was significantly stronger with a MORA, in "Influence on isometric muscle contraction during shoulder abduction by changing occlusal situation", Bull. Tokyo Med Dent Univ, 1996, 43 (1): 1- 12.

(g) Abduljabbar et al. found that individuals with loss of vertical dimension of occlusion respond to a bite raising appliance by increased isometric strength, "Effect of increased maxillo-mandibular relationship on isometric strength in TMD patients with loss of vertical dimension of occlusion", The Journal of Craniomandibular Practice (1997) Jan; 15(1) 57-67.

(h) al-Abassi et al. found that, in deep bite individuals, cervical muscle isometric strength is affected by bite position and vertical dimension of occlusion, "The effect of vertical dimension and mandibular position on isometric strength of the cervical flexors", The Journal of Cranio-Mandibular Practice, (1999) Apr; 17(2):85-92.

(i) Sakaguchi and others in 2007 reported that "changing mandibular position affected body posture, and conversely, that changing body posture affected mandibular position" (see "Examination of the Relationship Between Mandibular Position and Body Posture", The Journal of Craniomandibular Practice, (2007), 25, 237-249).

(j) More recently, researchers at Rutgers University, in beginning the journey of extending the research to dynamic situations in a study funded by a mouthguard company, compared a neuromuscular mouthguard with custom-fitted mouthguards. The studies indicate a significantly better performance of a neuromuscular mouthguard over a custom-fitted mouthguard with respect to vertical jump, peak power output, average peak power, and average mean power. (Arents et al. "Effects of a neuromuscular dentistry-designed mouthguard on muscular endurance and anaerobic power", Comparative Exercise Physiology (2010)).

Dalton illustrates the impact of poor posture on the effective weight of the head as it manifests itself in Forward head posture - "cross-syndromepattern". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7j_gHQfBZwg.

All the indications are that the TMJ plays a critical role in performance, and in the protection of the brain from traumatic injury from a blow to the head.

Research by Bite Tech centres around the effect of cortisol release and stress at the TMJ. = Bit eTech should complete this.

The relationship between Concussion and Performance