Mandibular and maxillary growth after changed mode of breathing.

The amount of maxillary and mandibular growth and the direction of maxillary growth were studied in 38 children during the 5 years after adenoidectomy for correction of severe nasopharyngeal obstruction. The amount of mandibular growth measured between successive gnathion points on superimposed radiographs was significantly greater in the group who had an adenoidectomy than in the matched controls. In the boys the difference was 3.8 mm (p less than 0.001), and in the girls the difference was 2.5 mm (p less than 0.01). The boys also showed a tendency toward greater growth in the maxilla as measured between successive subnasal points (1.2 mm, p less than 0.05). We detected no difference in the direction of maxillary growth between who had undergone adenoidectomy and the controls.