Maximum interincisal distance in mouth breathing children

Débora Martins CATTONI, Fernanda Dreux Miranda FERNANDES, Renata Cantisani DI FRANCESCO, Maria do Rosário Dias de Oliveira LATORRE

Introduction: The maximum interincisal distance is a very important aspect during myofunctional orofacial evaluation, because myofunctional orofacial disorders can limit mouth opening. Purpose: To describe the maximum interincisal distance of mouth breathing children, according to age, and to compare maximum interincisal distance means of mouth breathing children to those of children with no history of speech-language pathology disorders. Methods: Ninety-nine mouth breathing children, of both genders, with ages ranging from 7 to 11 years and 11 months, leukoderms, in the mixed dentition took part in this study. The control group was composed of 253 children, with ages ranging from 7 to 11 years and 11 months, leukoderms, in the mixed dentition period, with no history of speech-language pathology disorders. Results: The results show that the maximum interincisal distance mean of mouth breathing children was, considering the total sample, 43,55 millimeters, and did not show statistically significant difference according to age. There is no statistically significant difference between maximum interincisal distance means of mouth breathing children and of the control group children. Conclusions: The maximum interincisal distance is a measure that did not modify in mouth breathing children, during the mixed dentition period, according to age, and seems not to be altered in this population. The importance of the use of the caliper in objective evaluation of the maximum interincisal distance was also observed.

Keywords: Face. Measurements. Mouth. Child. Mouth breathing.

Wednesday, April 24, 2024 11:59