The hyoid bone is suspended under the mandible, in contact with muscles that connect it to the mandible and to the back of the skull. This bone is the only bone in our body that has no direct connection with other bones, so it is practically independent.
Function of the hyoid bone
The hyoid bone is responsible for leveling the posture. According to neurological experts, this is because the bone is in contact with different muscle chains on which posture depends. The upper part of the bone is connected to the jaw through various muscles, as well as to the base of the skull and the first cervical vertebrae and the sternum.
How does dental malocclusion influence low back pain?
When a spatial slippage of the mandible occurs, there is a slippage of the hyoid bone, which influences the tension of the muscular chains that level the posture of the cervical spine and the body. The teeth are responsible for determining the position of the jaw, which determines the position of the hyoid bone, responsible for regulating the posture of the cervical spine, shoulders and the rest of the spine up to the pelvis.
Thus, the incorrect position of the jaw triggers a cervical misalignment that can cause contractures. This postural damage can also influence the pelvis to tilt or cause one shoulder to be higher than the other. In general, dental malocclusion ends up generating cervical and lumbar pain.
In the same way, the misalignment of the cervical spine due to a contracture can end up influencing the dynamics of the jaw and generate dental malocclusion.