Assessment of changes in the nasal airway after nonsurgical miniscrew-assisted rapid maxillary expansion in young adults

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate changes in the volume and cross-sectional area of the nasal airway before and 1 year after nonsurgical miniscrew-assisted rapid maxillary expansion (MARME) in young adults. Materials and Methods: Fourteen patients (mean age, 22.7 years; 10 women, four men) with a transverse discrepancy who underwent cone beam computed tomography before (T0), immediately after (T1), and 1 year after (T2) expansion were retrospectively included in this study. The volume of the nasal cavity and nasopharynx and the cross-sectional area of the anterior, middle, and posterior segments of the nasal airway were measured and compared among the three timepoints using paired t-tests. Results: The volume of the nasal cavity showed a significant increase at T1 and T2 (P, .05), while that of the nasopharynx increased only at T2 (P, .05). The anterior and middle cross-sectional areas significantly increased at T1 and T2 (P, .05), while the posterior cross-sectional area showed no significant change throughout the observation period (P. .05). Conclusions: The results demonstrate that the volume and cross-sectional area of the nasal cavity increased after MARME and were maintained at 1 year after expansion. Therefore, MARME may be helpful in expanding the nasal airway. (Angle Orthod. 2018;88:435-441.)