Effects of surgical orthodontic treatment on masticatory behaviour of patients with jaw deformities measured by wearable device.

Evaluating masticatory behaviour before and after surgical orthodontic treatment is crucial for successful postoperative oral rehabilitation of patients with jaw deformities. In this study, masticatory function was evaluated by measuring masticatory behaviour quantitatively in patients with jaw deformities before and after surgical orthodontic treatment. The untreated group included 42 patients with jaw deformities. The post-treatment group included 55 patients whose jaw deformities had been corrected surgically at least 1 year previously. The control group included 53 adults with individual normal occlusion. Masticatory behaviour was measured using a Bitescan device, and the occlusal contact area and maximum occlusal force were measured using Dental Prescale II system. The post-treatment group had the longest eating time (P = 0.008 compared to the control group). There was no significant difference in the right-left imbalance among the groups (P = 0.078). Both occlusal contact area and maximum occlusal force of the untreated group and post-treatment group were significantly lower than those of the control group (all P < 0.001). This study revealed that postoperative masticatory behaviour was not sufficiently improved, suggesting the possibility of insufficient adaptation to postoperative occlusion, a state of recovery of masticatory muscles, and a reliance on habitual masticatory behaviour.