Positional change of the hyoid bone at maximal mouth opening.

The positional change of the hyoid bone in both closed and maximal mouth-opening positions of the mandible was investigated by cephalometric measurements. The following results were obtained: (1) With the increase in mouth opening the hyoid bone moved downward and backward. At maximal mouth opening the head posture changed posteriorly compared with that of occluded mouth position. (2) By superimposing films of the S-N plane, it became apparent that the hyoid bone was displaced downward by sagittal opening movement of the mandible and backward by the posterior change of the head posture. (3) Significant correlations were found between the degrees of sagittal rotation of the mandible and the position of the hyoid bone. (4) These results suggest that the posterior change of the head posture and inferior shift of the hyoid bone with mouth opening are important factors in obtaining maximal mouth opening.