Evaluation of nasal airway resistance during rapid maxillary
expansion using acoustic rhinometry.
Doruk C, Sokucu O, Sezer H, Canbay EI.
Department of Orthodontics, Cumhuriyet University, Sivas, Turkey.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate nasal airway resistance
(NAR) during rapid maxillary expansion (RME) using acoustic rhinometry
(AR). The sample comprised 22 children (13 girls and nine boys)
with maxillary constriction. The mean age was 12.9 +/- 1.54 years
and all patients were found to have normal nasal cavities following
anterior rhinoscopic examination. A modified bonded splint type
RME appliance was used for expansion. AR was used to measure NAR
before (T1), during (T2) and after (T3) expansion, and at the
end of retention (T4). Each AR recording was performed, for each
patient, with and without the use of a decongestant. Subjective
evaluation of reported changes in nasal breathing were also undertaken
at T3. The results showed that NAR was significantly reduced with
the use of RME, with the main decrease observed during expansion
(P < 0.05). The use of a decongestant was not found to have
any effect on the results. Subjective evaluation showed that 59
per cent of patients considered that their nasal breathing had
improved following RME.
PMID: 15366384 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Eur J Orthod. 2004 Aug;26(4):397-401.
