Reverse cycle chewing before and after orthodontic-surgical correction in class III patients.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of reverse-sequence chewing cycles in skeletal class III patients before and after orthodontic-surgical therapy to evaluate whether the occlusal and skeletal correction is followed by a functional improvement. STUDY DESIGN: Twenty skeletal class III patients (11 males and 9 females, 22.7 ± 3.0 years old) were recruited for this study. All patients received orthodontic and surgical treatment. Chewing cycles were recorded with a kinesiograph before (T0) and after (T1) therapy. RESULTS: A significant decrease in the number of reverse chewing cycles after surgical correction was exhibited in all recordings, when chewing either soft or hard boluses, on both the right and the left side. CONCLUSIONS: Evaluation of the prevalence of reverse chewing cycles could be considered an indicator of functional adaptation after therapy and a method for the early detection of nonresponding patients who may require further consideration using a different approach.