Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
4113931 | International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology | 2010 | 7 Pages |
IntroductionThe objective of the present study was to assess the craniocervical posture and the positioning of the hyoid bone in children with asthma who are mouth breathers compared to non-asthma controls.MethodsThe study was conducted on 56 children, 28 of them with mild (n = 15) and moderate (n = 13) asthma (14 girls aged 10.79 ± 1.31 years and 14 boys aged 9.79 ± 1.12 years), matched for sex, height, weight and age with 28 non-asthma children who are not mouth breathers. The sample size was calculated considering a confidence interval of 95% and a prevalence of 4% of asthma in Latin America. Eighteen variables were analyzed in two radiographs (latero-lateral teleradiography and lateral cervical spine radiography), both obtained with the head in a natural position. The independent t-test was used to compare means values and the chi-square test to compare percentage values (p < 0.05). Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to verify reliability.ResultsThe Craniovertebral Angle (CVA) was found to be significantly smaller in asthma than in control children (106.38 ± 7.66 vs. 111.21 ± 7.40, p = 0.02) and the frequency of asthma children with an absent or inverted hyoid triangle was found to be significantly higher compared to non-asthma children (36% vs. 7%, p = 0.0001). The values of the inclination angles of the superior cervical spine in relation to the horizontal plane were significantly higher in moderate than in mild asthma children (CVT/Hor: 85.10 ± 7.25 vs. 90.92 ± 6.69, p = 0.04 and C1/Hor: 80.93 ± 5.56 vs. 85.00 ± 4.20, p = 0.04).ConclusionsThese findings revealed that asthma children presented higher head extension and a higher frequency of changes in hyoid bone position compared to non-asthma children and that greater the asthma severity greater the extension of the upper cervical spine.