title: Oropharyngeal airway changes after rapid maxillary expansion: the state of the art.
abstract: The aim of this article is to elucidate the state of the art about how rapid maxillary expansion (RME) produces changes in the oropharyngeal airways in terms of CBCT (Cone Beam Computed Tomography) data during the growth period, according to the available literature. Electronic search was done from January 2009 to April 2014 on PubMed and Scopus databases; in addition manual search was conducted as well. According to keywords, seven papers were eligible for our purpose, but definitely five papers were selected in agreement with the inclusion/exclusion criteria. The current literature suggests that the potential relationship between RME and oropharyngeal airway changes is still unclear. In fact, although the pharyngeal airway changes after the rapid palatal expansion are evident clinically, current orthodontic literature does not provide conclusive evidence about the nature of this relationship.
authors.affiliation: Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, Dental Clinic, University of L'Aquila L'Aquila, Italy.
authors.forename: Eleonora
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ortu
authors.affiliation: Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, Dental Clinic, University of L'Aquila L'Aquila, Italy.
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Giannoni
authors.affiliation: Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, Dental Clinic, University of L'Aquila L'Aquila, Italy.
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ortu
authors.affiliation: Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, Dental Clinic, University of L'Aquila L'Aquila, Italy.
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gatto
authors.affiliation: Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, Dental Clinic, University of L'Aquila L'Aquila, Italy.
authors.forename: Annalisa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Monaco
keywords: Rapid maxillary expansion; children; rapid palatal expansion; upper airways