The impact of the long-term playing of musical instruments on the stomatognathic system - review.

In this article, we have made a review of the influence of playing musical instruments on the formation of malocclusion and TMJ disorders in musicians. Primary attention was paid to the effects of wind and stringed instruments. The aim of the article was the presentation of research and opinions about this problem in the last 25 years. It is reported that long-term and repetitive playing of musical instruments, particularly stringed (violin and viola) and wind instruments can cause dysfunctions of the stomatognathic system. The impact of wind instruments was assessed in terms of the type of mouthpiece. We studied the possibility of repositioning the front teeth and reducing the width of the upper dental arch and overbite. There were also reports on the use of a specific instrument to improve the child's occlusion. Studies have also been performed on the usefulness of relaxation plates in order to improve, and even prevent, dysfunction caused by the constant stress on the same parts of the stomatognathic system. The experiments were mainly based on interviews, dental cast analyses and cephalometric analyses. Additional methods were dynamometer tests and muscle tension palpation.