Customized Appliance Device for Force Detection in Bruxism Individuals: An Observational Study

Abstract

Objective. This study aims to test a customised device for detecting contact-related sleep bruxism in adult patients and to show the efficacy of an established biofeedback method incorporated within the device. Methods. Four volunteers, three of whom suffered from bruxism and one did not, underwent four tests to assess bruxism-related force detection during sleep with concurrent electromyographic recording and to compare SB activity with and without biofeedback stimuli. Results. The device detected sleep bruxism in bruxer individuals, whilst no activity emerged in the control individual. A correlation between EMG and device signals for bruxism-related events emerged. Moreover, bruxism activity showed a significant decrease on the nights when the biofeedback treatment was applied. Conclusion. The force-based device can detect appliance-contacting SB events as reliably as EMG recording. Finally, biofeedback stimuli allowed achieving a reduction in the severity and frequency of SB events.