Osseoperception and Tactile Sensibility: A Review.

Objectives: Tactile sensibility is an important characteristic for evaluating the masticatory efficiency in different occlusal situations. When a tooth is extracted, relevant propioceptors from the periodontal ligament get lost; and after the rehabilitation of this abscense by means of oral prosthesis, this sensibility decreases influencing masticatory function. The aim of this investigation is studying the difference in tactile sensibility values between some prosthetic situations such as implantprosthesis and complete dentures when comparing to values in natural dentition.
Methods: In order to dissect the information, a sistematic review of the available literature has been performed by analyzing articles in medical databases that are related to osseoperception and tactile sensibility. 25 articles, both review and research ones, have been included in the study; while 105 articles have been excluded as they were not related directly to tactile sensibility or osseointegration. Neither were included those articles which full text were unavailable.
Results: Tactile sensibility in implantprosthesis is slightly reduced compared to natural dentition, but presents very improved values with regard to complete dentures.
Conclusions: Implantprosthesis are more effective during masticatory function than complete dentures as they present an increased tactile sensibility, due to osseoperception phenomenon. Besides, values of tactile sensibility in implantprosthesis are very similar to those in natural dentition, allowing a better functional integration of the prosthesis.