Schimmel M Leemann B Herrmann FR Kiliaridis S Schnider A Müller F 2011 Orofacial functions are frequently affected by stroke, but little is known on the nature and extent of the impairment of mastication, which is investigated in this observational study. Thirty-one stroke patients, aged 69.0 ± 12.7 yrs, presenting with a hemi-syndrome with facial palsy, were recruited. Chewing efficiency, maximum bite and restraining lip forces were tested. Stroke severity (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale) and dental state were recorded. The control group was similar in age, gender, and dental state (n = 24). The chewing efficiency was significantly lower in the stroke group (p ≤ 0.0001) and was related to both the dental state and the lip forces measured with small and medium-sized labial plates. The maximum bite force proved to be not significantly different between sides or groups (n.s.), whereas lip force was significantly lower in the stroke group (p ≤ 0.05). Chewing efficiency is severely affected by stroke; thus, rehabilitation protocols should aim to restore the strength and co-ordination of the orofacial muscles. https://sonar.ch/global/documents/133974 eng info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1177/0022034510383860 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/pmid/21118794 Journal of dental research. - 2011 Aged Analysis of Variance Bite Force Chewing Gum DMF Index Dental Stress Analysis Facial Muscles Facial Paralysis Female Hemiplegia Humans Image Processing, Computer-Assisted Linear Models Lip Male Mastication Statistics, Nonparametric Stroke Masticatory function and bite force in stroke patients. http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501