Assessment of periodontal mechano-nociceptive function in healthy Chinese individuals

• The different patterns of mechano-nociceptive function in the periodontal ligament were evaluated.
• PPT values can reflect a variability of the biophysical properties of the periodontal ligament.
• The present PPT methodology is adequate for further clinical applications.

ObjectiveFew clinical techniques are available for the description of mechano-nociceptive function in human periodontal tissues. The objective of this study was to test a new technique for assessment of periodontal mechano-nociceptive function by direct application of controlled forces to the teeth and quantify site, side and gender differences in healthy individuals.DesignTwenty healthy young adults (ten males and ten females) participated. A handheld pressure algometer was used to assess pressure pain threshold (PPT) on the maxillary and mandibular central incisors, canines and first premolars on the left and the right side from two directions: lateral and vertical. Statistical analysis was performed using analyses of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measures to compare data.ResultsThere were significant gender differences of PPT for both lateral (Plateral = 0.007) and vertical (Pvertical = 0.001) directions with lower thresholds in females (higher sensitivity) than in males. A significant site effect (Plateral = 0.002, Pvertical < 0.001) was observed with less sensitivity at the first premolar compared to the anterior teeth. No significant right-to-left side differences (P = 0.082) were found for the PPTs. There were significant PPT differences between maxillary and mandibular teeth (Plateral = 0.020, Pvertical = 0.041,) and significant differences between lateral and vertical direction (P < 0.001).ConclusionThe novel application of PPTs directly to the teeth indicated an adequate and practical method with potential value for clinical assessment of painful conditions affecting the periodontal ligament.