Facial type and head posture of nasal and mouth-breathing children.

Abstract

Purpose: To verify the facial type and the head posture of nasal and mouth-breathing children from habitual and obstructive etiologies, as well as to correlate the morphological facial index to the head angulation position in the sagittal plane.

Methods: Participants were 59 children with ages between 8 years and 11 years and 10 months. All subjects were undergone to speech-language pathology screening, otorhinolaryngologic evaluation, and nasopharyngoscopy, allowing the constitution of three groups: nasal breathers--15 children; mouth breathers from obstructive etiology--22 children; and habitual mouth breathers--22 children. In order to determine facial type and morphological facial index, the height and the width of the face were measured using a digital caliper. The head posture was assessed through physical examination and computerized photogrammetry.

Results: It was verified the predominance of short face in nasal breathers, and long face in mouth breathers. There was an association among facial type and breathing mode/mouth breathing etiology: the brachyfacial type was more frequent among nasal breathers, and less frequent in subjects with obstructive nasal breathing. Head posture was similar in all three groups. No correlation was found between morphological facial index and head posture.

Conclusion: The brachyfacial type favors the nasal-breathing mode and the head posture is not influenced by breathing mode and by the etiology of mouth breathing, as well as it is not related to facial type.