Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of coverage, materials and thickness of experimental palatal plates on thermal sense. Methods: A total of 20 young adults who had normal dentitions except for third molars participated in this study. Three kinds of experimental plate were made for each subject. Those were an acrylic resin plate with 1.5mm in thickness (1.5R), a chromium-cobalt plate with 1.5mm in thickness (1.5M) and a chromium-cobalt plate with 0.5mm in thickness (0.5M). The stimuli were 10ml aliquots of distilled water. The water temperatures selected for testing were 37, 40, 42, 44, 46, 48 and 50 degrees centigrade for warm, and 37, 30, 26, 22, 18 and 14 degrees centigrade for cold. The method of magnitude estimation was used to obtain judgments of the intensity of oral sensation of warmth and cold (Green BG, Physiology and Behavior, 1985). The subjects were indicated to pour the water into the mouths as rapidly as possible and minimal (or no) contact with the lips in the four conditions; those were wearing 3 kinds of the experimental palatal plate and without a plate. Thereafter, the subjects were requested to compare each warm or cold stimulus with 37 degrees centigrade water. Two-way ANOVA was used for statistical analysis. A probability level of P<0.05 was considered significant. Results: The intensity of oral sensation was significantly weaker with any palatal plate compared to without the plate when differences in temperature were 10 degrees centigrade and more (P<0.05). But there was no significant difference depending on materials or thickness of the experimental palatal plates. Conclusions: This study suggested that thermal sense was significantly influenced by palatal coverage independently of materials and thickness of palatal plates.

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