Electrical stimulation device as possible treatment for nocturnal bruxism: Preliminary results

Nocturnal bruxism (NB) is a temporomandibular disorder characterized by an excessive clenching and involuntary parafunctional grinding of the teeth during sleep. It can cause dental damage and irreversible temporomandibular joint dysfunction. We designed a device that generates electrical stimulation on inhibitory sensory afferents when an EMG signal is measured. This stimulation was applied to the right mental nerve to produce a decrease in the contraction intensity of the mandibular elevation muscles. To measure the intensity of contraction, electromyographic (EMG) signal of the left temporalis anterior (LTa) muscle was used. The results showed that, on average, the percentage decrease in the bruxist group was 30.53% and for the control group was 28.91%. These results indicate that the device implemented generates an important decrease in the muscle contractile activity. Therefore, the device could be useful as a possible treatment to decrease nocturnal bruxism.