On the path for standardizing the assessment of masticatory performance

PURPOSE: Rehabilitation of compromised masticatory function is a primary goal in orthodontics. Therefore, its assessment is essential for monitoring and validating treatment. However, current methods typically focus on a single feature, such as color homogeneity or texture of the test bolus, thereby, limiting their applicability. This study introduces a new open-source software that facilitates easier comparison of mixing ability metrics and evaluates the feasibility of two novel methods that combine color homogeneity, saturation, brightness, and texture. METHODS: Bicolor gum samples were chewed 10, 20, and 30 times by 15 participants with class I normocclusion. The boluses were processed using a standardized protocol and photographed under controlled conditions. The state-of-the-art standard deviation of Hue (SDHue) was compared with two new metrics: the Hue-Saturation-Value (HSV) metric, which combines hue, saturation, and brightness, and the Patch Expected Value (PEV) metric, which associates hue and texture. Their ability to discriminate between chewing trials and their intercorrelations were assessed. RESULTS: All three metrics significantly discriminated between the three chewing conditions. The three metrics were correlated with one another across the entire dataset, with the lowest correlation between SDHue and HSV (r = 0.70). SDHue and PEV showed good to strong correlations across the 10×, 20×, and 30× cycle conditions (r = 0.62, 0.92, and 0.76, respectively). CONCLUSION: This study presents a reproducible methodology and the corresponding software for the objective assessment of masticatory performance. The combination of texture and color homogeneity appears feasible and promising, though further testing with finer mixing resolutions is needed.