Variations in tongue pressure in relation to age, gender, body mass index, and oral conditions

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of age, gender, and body mass index (BMI) on tongue pressure and to evaluate the correlation between tongue pressure and oral conditions such as tongue volume (TV), the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the masseter muscle, the maximum occlusal force (MOF), and the occlusal contact area (OCA) in healthy individuals. Additionally, the correlation between maximum tongue pressure (MTP) and swallowing tongue pressure (STP) was also analyzed.

Materials and methods 10 healthy young individuals (5 males and 5 females; ≤ 40 years) and 10 healthy elderly individuals (5 males and 5 females; ≥ 60 years) with normal oral structures and swallowing function were included in this study. TV (cm3) and CSA of masseter muscle (cm2) were evaluated after 3D reconstruction of the tongue and masseter muscle by importing the DICOM data of each participants MRI into the 3D image analysis software (Mimics 19.0; Materialise NV, Leuven, Belgium). MOF (N) and OCA (mm2) were calculated using an occlusal force analysis system (Dental Prescale II, GC Corporation, Tokyo, Japan). MTP and STP (kPa) were measured by using the JMS tongue pressure measurement device (TPM-02, JMS Co., Ltd., Hiroshima, Japan). The students t-test was used to compare the variables between the groups: the young adult and the elderly, or the male and female, respectively. To determine the influence of age, gender, and BMI on tongue pressure, multiple linear regression analysis for MTP and STP was performed. The correlations between tongue pressure and TV, CSA, MOF, and OCA, as well as the correlation between MTP and STP, were assessed using Pearsons correlation analysis. All statistical analyses in this study were performed using SPSS version 25.0 software. A p value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results The results showed that age had a significant effect on MTP (p = 0.012), with a mean value of 40.33 (± 8.15) kPa for young adults and 29.59 (± 9.08) kPa for the elderly. In multiple regression analysis, it was indicated that 0.325 kPa of MTP was reduced when a year of age was increased, and it was statistically significant (p = 0.005). However, there were no significant differences in MTP for gender (p = 0.320) and BMI (p = 0.764). Concerning STP, neither age, gender, nor BMI had a significant effect on STP. In correlation analysis, there were significant positive correlations between MTP and oral conditions such as right CSA of the masseter muscle (r = 0.485, p = 0.030), left CSA of the masseter muscle (r = 0.531, p = 0.016), and MOF (r = 0.544, p = 0.013). Regarding STP, no variables were significantly correlated with STP. However, there was a positive correlation between MTP and STP with a correlation coefficient of 0.496 and a p value of 0.026.

Conclusion It can be concluded that MTP is age-dependent and STP could be sustained at a certain level for a lifetime, and there was a significant positive correlation between MTP and STP. Moreover, it can also be concluded that oral conditions such as CSA of the masseter muscle, and MOF had a considerable effect on MTP.