A standardized system for evoking reflexes in human jaw elevator muscles.

A standardized reproducible system for evoking jaw reflexes following chin tap is described. It represents an improvement over non-standardized and other standardized forms of instrumentation in that characteristics of the associated jaw displacement and parameters of the evoked jaw jerk reflexes recorded using this system have been shown to be reproducible. The need for standardized instrumentation to evoke jaw reflexes of any kind is emphasized by the influence of graded variations in tap force on the parameters of the evoked jaw jerk reflex response. Thus, higher levels of tap force correlate with an increased jaw jerk duration and amplitude and a decreased latency.