title: Assessment of the pharyngeal airway space after mandibular setback surgery.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This retrospective study evaluated the change in pharyngeal airway space associated with surgical mandibular setback.
  
  
  METHODS
  Lateral cephalograms of 14 adult patients taken preoperatively, immediately postoperatively, and at long-term follow-up were traced, and the width of the pharyngeal airway space and the pharyngeal airway space area were calculated and compared.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At long-term follow-up, the mean amount of mandibular setback was 9.7 mm. The mean reduction in the distance from the tongue base to the posterior pharyngeal wall was 4.77 mm (28% decrease). The mean reduction in pharyngeal airway space area was 1.52 cm2, which corresponded to a 12.8% reduction. There was a strong correlation between the amount of mandibular setback and the decrease in pharyngeal airway space area.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Mandibular setback surgery causes a long-term decrease in pharyngeal airway space area. In patients who have other risk factors, for example, overweight, short necks, or large tongues, a mandibular setback procedure could possibly predispose to the development of sleep apnea syndrome.
authors.affiliation: School of Dentistry, University of California, San Francisco 94143-0440, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tselnik
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Pogrel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000402:Airway Obstruction / Q000209:etiology*; D002508:Cephalometry; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008334:Mandible / Q000601:surgery*; D008336:Mandibular Diseases / Q000601:surgery; D019647:Oral Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects*; D010027:Osteotomy / Q000009:adverse effects; D010614:Pharynx / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000473:pathology*; D011378:Prognathism / Q000601:surgery*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric