Mandibular form and position related to changed mode of breathing--a five-year longitudinal study.

A five-year follow-up study was performed on 26 children treated for nasal obstruction by adenoidectomy, who exhibited a changed mode of breathing postoperatively. They were compared with a control group matched according to age and sex. Lateral skull radiographs were used to examine mandibular morphology. The mandibular outline was registered using 36 digitized points. This method of portraying growth changes provides a valuable complement to isolated measurements. The technique revealed a more anterior direction of symphyseal growth in the adenoidectomy group following surgery as well as some reversal of the initial tendency to a posterior rotation of the mandible.