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Group function occlusion

Article  in  Indian Journal of Oral Sciences · January 2012

DOI: 10.4103/0976-6944.111173

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Review Article
Group function occlusion
Venus Sidana, Neeta Pasricha, Monika Makkar, Satpreet Bhasin
Departments of Prosthodontics, National Dental College, Dera Bassi, Punjab, India

ABSTRACT

The study of occlusion involves not only the static relationship of teeth but also their
functional interrelationship and all components of the masticatory system. Anterior guidance
is essential to a harmonious functional relationship in natural dentition and is critical to
functional occlusion. Anterior guidance can be categorized as canine guided and group
function. Both techniques are divergent in philosophy and technique. The purpose of this
article is to review group function occlusion. The group function occlusion on working side
distributes the occlusal load and prevents teeth on non working side from being subjected
to the destructive, obliquely directed forces.

Key words: Group function, occlusion, unilateral balanced occlusion

Introduction occlusion, is a widely accepted and used

Address for Correspondence: a path dictated by the condyles at the back
Dr. Venus Sidana,
Department of Prosthodontics,
National Dental College,
Dera Bassi, Punjab, India
E‑mail: drvenusj@yahoo.com
Date of Submission: 23‑08‑2012
Date of Acceptance: 23‑11‑2012
Access this article online
Website:
www.indjos.com
DOI:
10.4103/0976-6944.111173
Quick Response Code:
Occlusion has been, and is still to some
extent, a controversial issue in conventional
removable and fixed prosthodontics.
There is increasing interest in biological
and behavioral aspects of occlusion in
contrast to earlier emphasis on technical
and biomechanical principles. The collective
arrangement of the teeth in function is quite
important and has been subjected to great
deal of analysis and discussion over years.
As the mandible moves laterally, the lower
posterior teeth leave their centric contact
with upper teeth and travel sideways down
and by the lateral anterior guidance in front.
In the diversified literature on occlusion and
its role for functional pattern of masticatory
system two concepts stands out (1) canine
guidance as described by D’Amico is said
to favor the vertical chewing pattern and
to prevent wear of teeth, as in lateral
occlusion where the canines guide the
mandibular movement directly or indirectly
through periodontal receptors (2) group
function as described by Beyron implies
contact and stress on several teeth in lateral
occlusion and indicates abrasion as positive
and inevitable adjustment.The reason for
bringing any teeth into lateral function is to
distribute stress and wear over more teeth.
Group function occlusion, which is also
commonly known as unilateral balanced
method of tooth arrangement in restorative
dental procedures today. [1] Glossary of
Prosthodontic Terms defines Group
function as multiple contact relations
between maxillary and mandibular teeth
in lateral movements on the working
side whereby simultaneous contact of
several teeth acts as a group to distribute
occlusal forces. The group function of
the teeth on working side distributes the
occlusal load. The obvious advantage is
maintenance of the occlusion. The group
function philosophy appears to be one of
the physiologic wear. Several authors have
suggested that occlusal wear is a natural,
beneficial and inevitable in a well‑developed
dentition.
There has been great deal of emphasis on
canine guidance or disclusion since it was
first postulated by D’Amico. According
to some authorities the canines should
receive all the eccentric tooth contact in
lateral movements of the mandible however
canine guidance is not the only factor of
importance in medial guidance of mandible.
Young children in most formative years of
their lives (ages 6‑12 years) have no canine
guidance. It seems that if canines were
the only teeth of importance in medial
guidance of jaws, nature would have placed
these teeth early in mouth. If teeth are the
primary guiding factor for occluding. It is

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Sidana, et al.: Group function occlusion
obvious at the age of 6 it is cusps of molars that guide the
mandible laterally followed by premolars.[2]
The clinician should understand the possible combination
of both occlusal schemes as each has its advantages,
disadvantages, indications and contraindications. In the
mouth the unworn cuspids will act as a first line for vertical
control. If the cuspids eventually wear down the patient will
go into working‑side group function which has been built
into posterior crowns. The working side group function
acts as second line of control to prevent nonworking
contact.[3] Restoration must be planned and designed to fit
harmoniously with the complexities of the neuromuscular
control system, temporomandibular joint and supporting
structures without introducing occlusal interferences.
A stable posterior occlusion with smooth uninterrupted
protrusive and lateral movement of mandible is necessary.[4]
The purpose of this article is to review group function
occlusion. The data was collected from journals indexed
in medline using pubmed search.
Review of Literature
The literature credits Schulyer with enlightening clinicians
as to destructive forces associated with balanced contacts.
He observed that even though these contacts were essential
for stability of complete dentures, they were traumatic to
natural dentition causing TMJ dysfunction, periodontal
involvement or excessive wear. As a result of research
conducted by Schulyer and other investigators balanced
occlusion was replaced with functional relationship
unilateral balanced occlusion or group function occlusion.[5]
Schulyer,[6] and other advocates of group function viewed
occlusal wear as a compensatory adaptive change that
distributed stress to create a normal functional relationship.
Moses.[7] deduced it was nature’s plan for the cusps to wear
in a particular and beneficial manner which is related to
the vigorous function that primitive man was believed to
have exhibited. Beyron.[8] conducted a serial investigation
of the progressive occlusal changes in the natural dentition.
He demonstrated that group function was conducive
to occlusal wear, and was capable of allowing an even
distribution of stress. Scaife and Holt,[9] demonstrated
that the percentage of patients with wear facets increased
in direct proportion to degree of group function, thus
actually providing evidence to reinforce the theory of
group function.
Fereidoun Parnia and Elnaz Moslehi,[1] studied pattern of
occlusal contacts in eccentric mandibular position in dental
students. They found that most of the working contact
pattern was group function (60%). Ingervell.[10] recorded
tooth contact pattern in laterotrusion, protrusion and
Indian Journal of Oral Sciences  Vol. 3  Issue 3  Sep-Dec 2012
retrusion of mandible in young men with varying type of
occlusion. He found that on laterotrusion most subjects had
group function on the functional side. Rinchuse, Kandasamy
and Sciote.[11] stated that single type of occlusion has not
been predominant in nature. according to them canine
protected occlusion is one of several possible optimal
functional occlusion. According to them group function
occlusion and balanced occlusion (with no interference)
appears to be acceptable functional occlusal scheme
depending on patient characteristics. O’ Ieary, Shanley and
Drake,[12] found that teeth in group function occlusion had
less mobility than teeth in cuspid protection occlusion.
Panek,[13] et al., concluded from their study on dynamic
occlusion in natural dentition that bilateral canine
protected occlusion seems to be most typical occlusion for
younger patients while group function occlusion was more
common for older patients. According to them canine
protected occlusion seems to be the most suitable pattern
for orthodontic and prosthetic rehabilitation planned in
younger adults while group function occlusion may be
good pattern for prosthetic rehabilitation in older patients.
Jemt T and Lundiquist S,[14] stated that chewing pattern
may be influenced by the type of occlusion. They found
angle of departure was steeper than angle of approach
and these angles were slightly greater with group function.
Mandibular velocity was higher for group function than
canine guidance. Duration of chewing was stable for
both of them. Valenzula,[15] et al., conducted a study to
determine the effect of canine protection and group
function occlusion on suprahyoid and infrahyoid EMG
activity. They found that EMG activity was significantly
not different for both the schemes. Su, Jiang and Cheng,[16]
evaluated the clinical treatment effect of bruxism by using
group function and canine protected occlusion splint.
They found that both splints have similar curative effect
for bruxism.
Canine protected occlusion versus group function
occlusion
The job of discluding the non functioning side is always the
responsibility of the working side. How the working side
discludes the non functioning side is an important decision
that must be made for each patient. We must decide which
teeth are capable of carrying how much load and assign
the load accordingly.
Group function of working side is indicated whenever
the arch relationship does not allow the anterior guidance
to do its job of discluding the nonfunctioning side. The
anterior guidance cannot do its job in conditions like Class 1
occlusion with extreme over jet, Class 3 occlusion with all
lower anterior teeth outside of upper, some end to end
bites and anterior open bite.
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Sidana, et al.: Group function occlusion
Flowchart 1: Canine guided v/s Group function occlusion
While assigning group function the rule which applies is
that the contacting inclines must be perfectly harmonized
to border movements of the condyles and the anterior
guidance. Partial group function allows some of posterior
teeth to share load in lateral excursion, whereas others
contact only in centric relation.
For group function to be effective in reducing the lateral
stress, the cusp inclines must harmonize with the lateral
border movements of mandible. Posterior cusp inclines
that are not contoured to match mandibular movements
are disoccluded or they interfere if incline is too steep
than the lateral movement. If rule of stress distribution is
understood, it is practical to distribute stress over some or
all the posterior teeth.[17]
Canine disclusion may provide a cuspid protected occlusion
in parafunctional lateral movements that may be beneficial
if posterior teeth have significant bone loss, considerable
occlusal wear or number of cracks and if patient clenches
or grinds the teeth. Canine disclusion is preferred to group
function the conditions as follows [Flowchart 1]:
• If both canines on one side have little or no bone
loss the first condition for the use of canine guidance
126
is met. The radiographs should show normal sized
canine roots that have little evidence of bone loss. If
canine occlude in lateral movements toward the side
in which these teeth are present canine rise is logical
approach. If sound maxillary and mandibular canines
do not occlude in lateral movement, canine disclusion
cannot be achieved. If posterior teeth have little or no
bone loss, group function is the objective. If posterior
teeth have moderate to severe bone loss and canines
are essentially sound, canines may be restored to create
canine disclusion or orthodontic positioning of canines
can be used to permit it.
• If one or both canines on one side have moderate to
severe bone loss and guided tissue regeneration is not
feasible, canine disclusion should be discarded as an
objective. If adjacent teeth have moderate to severe bone
loss as do canines, splinting to distribute the loading
more evenly is necessary. If mobility is minimal selective
grinding to smooth out group function will suffice.[18]
Whether any tooth should share the lateral stress should
be decided by its resistance to lateral stresses.[19]
The occlusal concepts (balanced, group function, canine
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Sidana, et al.: Group function occlusion

protected occlusion) have been successfully adopted for
implant supported prosthesis. Occlusal consideration while
restoring various clinical situation with implant supported
prosthesis are as shown in Table 1.
Occlusal relationship of the teeth in
group function
There is general agreement that balancing side contact is
not desirable in lateral movements.
A Balancing side interference is a contact on balancing side
that causes disclusion of the working side or that interferes
with smooth gliding movements.
A working side interference is a contact on the working
side that causes working side disclusion or displacement
of mobile tooth on the working side.
When the mandibular teeth make their initial contact with
the maxillary teeth in right or left lateral occlusal relation
they bear a right or left lateral relation to centric occlusion.
The canines, premolars and molars of one side of the
mandible make their occlusal contact facial to their facial
cusp ridges at some portion of their occlusal thirds. Those
points on the mandibular teeth make contact with maxillary
teeth at points just lingual to their facial cusp ridges. The
central and lateral incisors of the working side are not usually
in contact at the same time if they are the labio‑incisal
portion of the mandibular teeth of that side are in contact
with linguo‑incisal portions of maxillary teeth.[20]
If we intend to provide group function on working side we
should be aware all teeth do not stay in excursive contact
for same length of stroke. As the mandible starts its move
to the working side, all of the posterior teeth may contact
in harmony with the anterior guidance and condyle, as
mandible moves further to the side, the first teeth to
disengage from contact are the most posterior molar. The
disengagement is progressive, starting with back molar,
which has shortest contact strokes, forward to canines,
which has the longest contact stroke.
The molar contact is maintained for only a fraction of
inclined surface, whereas the canine contact is often
maintained all the way to the incisal tip. The reason for
giving canine such a long contact ride and progressively
shorter contact as we go distally is based on factors of
geometry and stress. As the working condyle rotates the
path travelled around the centre of rotation lengthens as
the distance from the condyle increases.
While the canine is travelling the full length of its incline
from centric to its incisal edge, the second molar is traveling
about half that far. When the canine reaches its incisal
edge, the molar still has some incline left on which it could
ride out. However, if the molar continued its contact after
the canine was disengaged; the stress would no longer be
shared by the protective anterior guidance. It would instead
be loaded entirely on to the outer incline of the molar
and would create lateral torque in the extremely stressful
position near the condylar fulcrum.
Because of these reasons the lingual incline of the upper
buccal cusps should be contoured to prevent posterior
contact from occurring after the lower canine reach the
incisal edge of the upper canine.[17]
Summary

Table 1: Occlusal considerations for implants[19] It is usually possible to achieve the interference free
Edentulous Type of prosthesis Optimal occlusion occlusal relationship with either canine guidance or group
scheme function. It has been found that muscle activity is reduced
Edentulous Implant supported Group function with canine guidance. Further canines are considered
fixed prosthesis (widely accepted)
Opposing natural mutually protected to be stronger than the other teeth so it becomes
dentition with shallow customary to speak of cuspid protection occlusion
Opposing a complete anterior guidance however this situation is not customary observed
denture (recommended)
Bilateral balanced
except in younger patient. The arbitrary selection of
occlusion canine protected occlusion for all patients ignores
Edentulous Implant supported Bilateral balanced the value and importance of every person’s unique
overdenture with lingualized stomatognathic and neuromuscular functional status.
occlusion or
monoplane occlusion
Perhaps patients with different craniofacial structures
Class III or class IV Free standing FPD Group function or chewing patterns might adapt better to one type of
partially edentulous occlusion. Group function is most often encountered
Class I or II partially Free standing FPD Mutually protected in elderly. With this type of occlusion it is possible to
edentulous Group function achieve harmonious balance of all involved structures
(when anterior teeth
are periodontally including muscles, temporomandibular joint, teeth and
compromised) their occlusal anatomy. Furthermore a patient with
FPD: Fixed partial denture parafunctional bruxing habit might welcome the lateral

Indian Journal of Oral Sciences  Vol. 3  Issue 3  Sep-Dec 2012 127

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Sidana, et al.: Group function occlusion

excursive freedom of group function. Consideration of a
patient’s chewing pattern, craniofacial morphology, static
occlusion type, current oral health status, parafunctional
habits might provide the important and relevant
information about the suitable functional occlusion type
for each patient.
References
1. Parnia F, Moslehi E, Sadar K, Motiagheny N. Pattern of occlusal contacts
in eccentric mandibular position in dental students. J Dent Res Dent Clin
Dent Prospect 2008;2:85‑9.
2. Claude Rufenachi R. Fundamentals of esthetics. Chapter physiology of
occlusion. Illinois: Quintessence publishing Co, 1990. p. 155.
3. Robert lee. Anterior guidance. Advances in occlusion. Boston: John
Wright P.S.G; 1982. p 64‑5.
4. McCullock AJ. Making occlusion work: 2. Practical considerations. Dent
Update 2003;30:218‑9.
5. Thornton  LJ. Anterior guidance: Group function/canine guidance.
A literature review. J Prosthet Dent 1990;64:479‑82.
6. Schyuler CH. The function and importance of incisal guidance in oral
rehabilitation. J Prosthet Dent 2001;86:219‑32.
7. Moses CH. The significance of stress in the practice of preventive and
restorative dentistry. J Dent Med 1952;7:101‑3.
8. Beyron  HL. Occlusal changes in adult dentition. J  Am Dent Assoc
1954;48:674‑86.
9. Scaife RR Jr, Holt JE. Natural occurrence of cuspid guidance. J Prosthet
Dent 1969;22:225‑9.
10. Ingervell  B. Tooth contacts of functional and non functional side in
children and young adults. Arch Oral Biol 1972;17:191‑200.
11. Rinchuse DJ, Kandasamy S, Sciote J. A contemporary and evidence‑based
view of canine protected occlusion. Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop
2007;132:90‑102.
12. O Leary TJ, Shanley DB, Drake RB. Tooth mobility in cuspid protected
and group function occlusions. J Prosthet Dent 1972;27:21‑5.
13. Panek H, Matthews‑Brzozowska T, Nowakowska D, Panek B, Bielicki G,
Makacewicz S, et al. Dynamic Occlusion in natural permanent dentition.
Quintessence Int 2008;39:337‑42.
14. Jemt T, Lundquist S, Hedegard B. Group function or canine protection.
J Prosthet Dent 1982;48:719‑24.
15. Valenzula S, Baeza M, Miralles R, Cavada G, Zúñiga C, Santander H.
Laterotrusive occlusal schemes and their effect on supra‑hyoid
and infrahyoid electromyographic activity. Angle Orthod 2006;76:585‑90.
16. Su SW, Jiang YH, Cheng Z. Evaluation of the treatment effect of bruxism
using two occlusal splint. Shanghai Kou Qiang Yi Xue 2010;19:253‑4.
17. Dawson  PE. Functional occlusion from TMJ to smile design. United
States: Mosby publication; 2007. P 222‑8.
18. Hall WB. Critcal decision in periodontology. 4th ed. London: B C Decker
Inc; 2003. p. 1289.
19. Shantanu J, Mohit K, Mukund K. Occlusion and Occlusal consideration
in Implantology. IJDA 2010;2:125‑30.
20. Wheeler RC. Dental Anatomy, Physiology, Occlusion. 7th ed. Philadelphia:
W.B Saunders publication; 1974. p 450
How to cite this article: Sidana V, Pasricha N, Makkar M, Bhasin S.
Group function occlusion. Indian J Oral Sci 2012;3:124-8.
Source of Support: Nil, Conflict of Interest: None declared

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