Morphological Changes of the Epipharynx as a Result of Rapid Maxillary Expansion in Children

Abstract

Rapid maxillary expansion（RME）is a technique used to treat dental malalignment. Consensus has yet to be reached changes in the epipharyngeal region associated with RME. The objective of this study was to ascertain the morphological changes that occur in the epipharyngeal region as a result of RME. In the present study, a comparative investigation of the pharyngeal tonsils and the epipharyngeal airway on lateral cephalograms scanned before and after RME was therefore performed. Fourteen patients who underwent orthodontic treatment for dental malalignment by RME were included. The mean length of pharyngeal tonsil（A）was 114.65 pixels before RME and 108.64 pixels after RME. The mean value of epipharyngeal space（N）was 210.72 pixels before RME and 233.95 pixels after RME. The mean A/N ratio was 0.547 before RME and 0.466 after RME. The mean pharyngeal tonsil（Pt）area was 16181.14 pixels before RME and 16407.71 pixels after RME. The mean airway（Air）area was 12488.96 pixels before RME and 16040.64 pixels after RME. The mean Pt / Ep（Ep = Pt + Air）area was 0.570 before RME and 0.502 after RME. In this study showed that the A/N and Pt/Ep ratios decreased significantly after RME. The N and Air area values also increased significantly, but there were no significant changes in the A and Pt area values. It was concluded that the decrease in the A/N and Pt/Ep ratios were due to the changes in the N and Air area values.