Phantom bite: A survey of U.S. orthodontists

• Main Author: Ligas, Bozena B
• Format: Dissertation
• Language: English
• Published: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses 01-01-2009
• Subjects: Dentistry; Psychobiology
• ISBN: 9781109039733; 1109039735

Dr. Marbach coined the term "phantom bite" in 1976 describing a patient's perception of having an irregular bite when the clinician could identify no evidence of a discrepancy. The patient typically presents with a history of bite altering procedures, hyper-awareness of occlusion, a persistent complaint of an uncomfortable bite, usually with an absence of pain. Patients with phantom bite syndrome often undergo lengthy, expensive, irreversible, and unnecessary treatments in search for a resolution of their symptoms. The objectives of the present study were: (1) to gauge orthodontists' awareness of phantom bite, (2) to identify the most common types of treatments rendered for this phenomenon, and (3) to identify if regional differences or length of practice experience affected the aforesaid factors. The study consisted of a 14-item survey administered electronically using SurveyMonkey™ software (SurveyMonkey.com, Portland, OR). 4,124 orthodontists were recruited to participate via e-mail; 337 completed the survey. Among orthodontists who responded to the survey, three hypotheses were tested: (1) there is no relationship between familiarity with the term phantom bite and the region of the U.S. in which the orthodontist practices, (2) there is no relationship between familiarity with the term phantom bite and the number of years the orthodontist has been in practice, and (3) there is no relationship between the type of treatment rendered and the region of the U.S. in which the orthodontist practices. The null hypotheses were confirmed as there were no statistically significant differences among any of the groups. Approximately 50% of the orthodontists who responded to the survey were not familiar with the term phantom bite. This may indicate a need for increasing awareness of this syndrome in order to provide these patients with appropriate care.