Rapid Maxillary Expansion Can Positively Affect Tongue Position
Tongue Posture Improvement and Pharyngeal Airway Enlargement as Secondary6 Effects of Rapuid Maxcillary Expansion: A Cone-Beam Computed Tomography Study.
Iwasaki T, Saitoh I, et al:
Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop 2013; 143 (February) 235-245
Mouth breathing patients with nasal obstruction can significantly benefit from rapid maxillary expansion.
Article Reviewed: Tongue Posture Improvement and Pharyngeal Airway Enlargement as Secondary Effects of Rapid Maxillary Expansion: A Cone-Beam Computed Tomography Study. Iwasaki T, Saitoh I, et al: Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop; 2013;143 (February): 235-245.
Background: Orthodontists have known for years that nasal obstruction and consequent mouth breathing can negatively affect growth. Rapid maxillary expansion (RME) has been shown to increase nasal volume, but does it also affect tongue posture?
Objective: To clarify the effect of RME on tongue posture and pharyngeal airway volume in children with nasal airway obstruction.
Participants/Methods: Investigators evaluated 28 patients approximately 10 years of age who required RME treatment and a second group of 20 controls approximately the same age who required orthodontic treatment but not RME. Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) images were taken prior to and after RME in the treatment group and at similar times in the control group. These images were used to measure changes in the oral, nasal, and pharyngeal airways, and computed fluid dynamics were used to determine the presence of any functional obstruction of the nasal airway.
Results: After RME, the intraoral airway volume decreased significantly whereas total pharyngeal airway volume, retropalatal airway volume, and oral pharyngeal airway volume all increased significantly. Additionally, in the RME group tongue posture was raised.
Conclusions: RME results in a higher tongue posture for patients who have nasal obstruction.
Reviewer's Comments: I found this study to be very interesting. I was aware of previous studies that showed positive effects of increased nasal air volume as a result of RME, but I was not aware that RME also had the positive effect of raising tongue posture. I believe we will be seeing more studies using CBCT to provide a clear 3-dimensional image of anatomical structures.(Reviewer–John S. Casko, DDS, MS, PhD).
© 2013, Oakstone Publishing, LLC
