Study of Upper Jaw Expansion Treatment to Improve Sleep Disorders in Children with Narrow Maxilla

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are studying whether expanding the upper jaw with orthodontic therapy can improve sleep-related breathing problems in children with a narrow upper jaw. The study will include 20 children with this condition and a control group of children without it. Parents or caregivers will complete the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire PSQ to assess sleep before and after treatment to see if the therapy helps. Participants in the treatment group will receive rapid maxillary expansion using a palatal expander with a hyrax screw, activated twice daily until the desired width is achieved. The control group will not receive this expansion. Before treatment and one year after, children will have 3D facial and dental scans taken. The study uses advanced 3D scanning technology and PSQ questionnaires to evaluate changes and outcomes. During the study, parents or caregivers will fill out the PSQ to assess sleep breathing problems. Researchers will compare 3D facial and dental scans and PSQ results from before and after treatment to measure changes in face structure, palate volume, and sleep disorder symptoms. Additional assessments include latero-lateral cephalogram imaging. The study aims to better understand the effects of maxillary expansion on sleep disorders in children over about one year.

Effect of the Palatal Expansion Treatment on Reported Sleeping Disorders in Children