Rapid maxillary expansion in mouth breathers: a short-term skeletal and soft-tissue effect on the nose

Publication date: Available online 24 February 2017
Source:Brazilian Journal of Otorhinolaryngology
Author(s): Fauze Ramez Badreddine, Reginaldo R. Fujita, Fabio Eduardo Maiello Monteiro Alves, Mario Cappellette
IntroductionRapid maxillary expansion (RME) can change the form and function of the nose. The skeletal and soft tissue changes can influence the esthetics and the stability of the results obtained by the RME.ObjectiveThe aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the short-term effects of RME on the skeletal and soft tissue structures of the nose, in mouth-breathing patients, using a reliable and reproducible, but simple methodology, with the aid of computed tomography.MethodsA total of 55 mouth-breathing patients with maxillary hypoplasia were assessed and were divided into an Experimental Group (EG) treated with RME (39 patients, 23 of which were male and 16 female, with an average age of 9.7 years and a standard deviation of 2.28, ranging from 6.5 to 14.7 years) and a Control Group (CG) (16 patients, 9 of which were male and 7 female, with an average age of 8.8 years, standard deviation of 2.17, ranging from 5.11 to 13.7 years). The patients of the EG were submitted to multislice computed tomography examinations (CT) at two different points in time: (T1) pre-RME and (T2) three months after the RME. The CG underwent to the same exams at the same intervals of time. Four skeletal and soft tissue variables were assessed, comparing the results of T1 and T2.ResultsThere was in the EG a significant increases in all the skeletal and soft tissue variables (p<0.05) but no significant alteration was found in the CG. When comparing the EG and the CG, the most important change occurred in the width of the pyriform aperture (p<0.001).ConclusionRME is capable of altering the shape and function of the nose, promoting alterations in skeletal and soft tissue structures. This kind of study may, in the future, permit the proper planning of esthetic procedures at the tip and base of the nose and also the performance of objective measurements in early or late surgical outcomes.



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