3-D pharyngeal airway related to facial morphology, upper cervical vertebral column morphology and skeletal maturation in children: a pilot study

Pharyngeal airway dimensions are associated with growth, anatomical, postural and mechanical factors, but the interactions of these associations are not yet fully understood. Therefore the aim of the present study was to examine and relate the pharyngeal airway dimensions to dentofacial morphology, upper cervical vertebral column morphology and skeletal maturation in pre-orthodontic children. Furthermore, parameters with the greatest relevance to airway dimensions were analysed. Subjects and Methods: Airway volume, minimal cross-sectional area and upper cervical vertebral column morphology were 3-dimensionlly assessed on 105 CBCT scans of healthy pre-orthodontic children (44 boys, 61 girls; mean age, 10.7 ± 2.4 years). Cephalometric features and skeletal maturity were assessed on generated 2-dimensional cephalograms. Associations were tested by Spearman correlation analyses and analyses of variance (ANOVA). The effect of gender, age and skeletal maturation and the parameters with the greatest relevance to airway dimensions were tested by linear regression analysis. Results: The airway volume and minimal cross-sectional area were greater in children of an older age than younger age (p<0.001, p