and 2Universidade de Fortaleza – UNIFOR,

ABSTRACT- Background: Chewing is composed of structures that must be balanced to achieve optimal function and bite force is one of the components of this function. Aim: To analyze the bite force of candidates for bariatric surgeries. Method: Was used surface electromyography Miotool 200/400 (Miotec ® , Porto Alegre/RS, Brazil) coupled to bite load cell, SDS1000 sensor, to record the maximum force reading during the execution of the bite. The device was integrated with software Miograph 2.0. Inclusion criteria were: morbidly obese patients regardless of gender, age 20-40 years, no absences and/or important dental changes and candidates for gastroplasty. Were studied the bites in left and right lateral position and their intensity measured in kilogram force (kgf). The exclusion criterion was that of patients who had facial deformities and/or occlusal position preventing any collection. Results: Were analyzed 39 patients (59 % women), mean age 27.1 (+/-5.7). They had anterior bite force in average 9.1 kgf (min 1.3 and max 22.9 kgf- +/-5.2); left side with average 16.3 kgf (min 1.5 and max 55.6 kgf- +/-11.9); right side with average of 14.0 kgf (min 2.3 and max 45.3 kgf- +/-9.4). Conclusion: The bite force was inferior to those described fo