Mandibular decubitus syndrome
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
Overview
The Mandibular Decubitus Syndrome is a group of disorders of the masticatory apparatus such as the loss of balance of the jaw and the facial asymmetry due to the constant use, during sleep, of positions that can represent an obstacle to the natural movements of the jaw.
In these incorrect positions the jaw is displaced in a forced, unbalanced, lateral occlusion with static load lying on the three components of the stomatognathic system: neuromuscular, osteoarticular and dentoperiodontal. For this reason the natural meccanism of the deglutition (performed normally every four minutes) become cause of teeth chafing which, obviously, damages all the dental structures. Evident consequences of the mandibular decubitus are malocclusions of teeth, nocturnal bruxism and periodontitis.