Effects of mouth breathing on maxillofacial and airway development in children and adolescents with different cervical vertebral maturation stages: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: To examine the influence of mouth breathing on maxillofacial and airway development in children and adolescents with different cervical vertebral maturation stages.

METHODS: Lateral cephalometric radiograph of a total of 120 children and adolescents, 64 girls and 56 boys (7-15 years old), diagnosed with mouth breathing were examined. Maxillofacial hard tissue, soft tissue and airway measurements were obtained using both manual and digital techniques. Independent samples t-test was performed to compare the difference between the measured indexes and the standard values.

RESULTS: As for maxillofacial hard tissue, SNB (CS1-CS5), GoGn (CS1-CS5), ArGoNa (CS1-CS5), ArGo (CS1-CS2) and SNA (CS1-CS2) in mouth breathing children and adolescents were below the standard values (P < 0.05). NGoMe (CS1-CS5), SN-MP (CS1-CS4), SN-PP (CS1-CS4), PP-MP (CS1-CS3) and SN-GoGn (CS1-CS2) in mouth breathing children and adolescents were above the standard values (P < 0.05). As for maxillofacial soft tissue measurements, H angle (CS1-CS5), lower lip length (CS1-CS5), upper lip protrusion (CS1-CS5), upper lip length (CS1-CS4), lower lip protrusion (CS1-CS3), surface Angle (CS2-CS3) and nasolabial angle (CS2) in mouth breathing children and adolescents were above the standard values with statistically significance (P < 0.05). As for airway measurements, PAS (CS1, CS2, CS5) in mouth breathing children and adolescents was above the standard value with statistical significance (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: Mouth breathing had a real effect on maxillofacial and airway development, which differed among mouth breathing children and adolescents with different cervical vertebral maturation.