Acoustic myography, electromyography and bite force in the masseter muscle.

Acoustic myography (AMG) offers some advantages over electromyography (EMG) in certain circumstances, but the use of AMG on the jaw-closing muscles has not been fully tested. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between AMG, EMG and force in the masseter muscles of nine healthy male subjects. The AMG was recorded using a piezoelectric crystal microphone and the EMG was recorded simultaneously with surface electrodes. Force was recorded between the anterior teeth with a strain-gauge transducer. Analysis showed that Pearson's correlation coefficient was 0.913 for force/AMG and 0.973 for force/EMG in all subjects, indicating a linear relationship between force, AMG and EMG at the four different force levels tested (25-75% of maximum). It is apparent that AMG may be used as an accurate monitor of masseter muscle force production, although some care is required in the technique.