Influence of fixed orthodontic therapy on pharyngeal airway dimensions after correction of class-I,-II and-III skeletal profiles in adolescents

Abstract

The aim was to compare the influence of fixed orthodontic therapy (OT) on the pharyngeal airway space dimensions after correction of class-I,-II and-III skeletal profiles and among untreated adolescent patients. A control group comprising of untreated patients was also included. Demo-graphics and OT-related information was retrieved from patients’ records. Measurements of airway spaces in the nasopharynx, oropharynx and hypopharynx were performed on lateral cephalograms. p-values under 0.05 were considered statistically significant. The results showed no statistically significant differences in the naso-, oro-and hypo-pharyngeal airway spaces among patients with class-I,-II and-III skeletal profiles and individuals in the control group. There were no statistically significant differences when naso-, oro-and hypo-pharyngeal airway spaces were compared among patients with class-I,-II and-III skeletal profiles. In conclusion, in non-extraction cases without maxillary expansion, fixed OT does not affect the naso-, oro-and hypo-pharyngeal airway spaces in patients with skeletal Class-I,-II and-III skeletal profiles. Further studies involving patients undergoing ME and premolar extraction are needed to elucidate the influence of fixed OT on the naso-, oro-and hypo-pharyngeal airway spaces.