Cranio-facial morphology and obstructive sleep apnea: the role of dento-facial orthopedics

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Abstract

Orthodontists, thanks to their keen appreciation of facial morphology and their skills in making functional examinations, are ideally placed to detect breathing problems in their patients that can require an ENT assessment, with special attention paid to the evaluation of sleep patterns. After a site of obstruction, resulting from a soft tissue anomaly and/or a narrowing of the airway passage through bone, has been established, orthodontists may be called upon to undertake corrective treatment sometimes in conjunction with a surgical procedure.