BackgroundNon-nutritive sucking habits may adversely affect the orofacial complex. This systematic literature review aimed to find scientific evidence on the effect of pacifier sucking on orofacial structures.MethodsA search on MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Web of Science databases was conducted to find all pertinent articles published from inception until February 2018, based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The quality of the studies was evaluated using the risk of bias judgements in non-randomized studies of interventions (ROBINS-I).ResultsAmong the 2288 articles found, 17 articles met the selection criteria: seven prospective cohort studies, nine cross-sectional studies, and one randomized clinical trial. Using ROBINS-I, 12 studies were evaluated to have a serious overall risk of bias and five, a moderate one.These studies claimed a strong association between a pacifier sucking habit and the presence of an anterior open bite and posterior crossbite. Functional/orthodontic pacifiers were shown to cause significantly less open bites than the conventional ones.ConclusionsHigh level of evidence of the effect of sucking habits on orofacial structures is missing. The available studies show severe or moderate risk of bias; hence, the findings in the literature need to be very carefully evaluated.There is moderate evidence that the use of pacifier is associated with anterior open bite and posterior crossbite, thus affecting the harmonious development of orofacial structures.Functional/orthodontic pacifiers reduce the prevalence of open bite when compared to the conventional ones, but evidence is needed concerning the effects on posterior crossbite. Well-designed randomized controlled trials are needed to further analyze the effects of functional/orthodontic and conventional pacifiers on orofacial structures.

The dental, skeletal, and soft-tissue characteristics of a particular malocclusion can differ based on ethnicity, race, age, sex and geographical location with Class II malocclusion being one of the most prevalent malocclusions encountered in orthodontic clinical practice. The broad understanding of the characteristics of vertical skeletal and dental parameters in patients with Class II malocclusion can help clinicians to identify patterns and variations in the expression of this phenotype for better treatment outcomes. Hence, we compared the craniofacial characteristics of skeletal and dental Class II malocclusion traits from Indian and Vietnamese individuals to analyze the vertical skeletal and dental patterns in both population groups. The sample comprised of lateral cephalograms from 100 young adults with Class II malocclusion, of which fifty (25 males and 25 females) were from South India and the other 50 age- and sex-matched adults from Vietnam. The lateral cephalometric radiographs were digitized into anonymous image files and were traced and assessed for 16 vertical skeletal and dental parameters. The ANB angle was greater in males (+1.4 deg; p < 0.001) and females (+1.9 deg; p < 0.001) in the South Indian population. The Vietnamese males had a larger mandibular plane angle, articular angle, anterior facial height and lower anterior facial height compared to the Indian males. The Vietnamese females had larger mandibular plane and articular angles compared to the Indian females. The skeletal class II malocclusion was more severe in the South Indian compared to the Vietnamese adults. The Vietnamese sample showed a generalized tendency towards a more vertical skeletal growth pattern and in males this pattern seemed to be due to the dentoalveolar component. The Vietnamese females showed a tendency towards a vertical growth pattern, but without apparent contribution by the dentoalveolar component.

The aim of this cohort study was to quantify the morphological changes in the palatal cleft and true cleft areas with passive plate therapy using a new analysis method based on three-dimensional standardized reproducible landmarks. Forty-five casts of 15 consecutive patients with complete unilateral cleft lip and palate were laser scanned and investigated retrospectively. The landmarks and the coordinate system were defined, and the interrater and intrarater measurement errors were within 1.0 mm. The morphological changes of the cleft palate area after a period of 8 months of passive plate therapy without prior lip surgery are presented graphically. The median decrease in cleft width was 38.0% for the palatal cleft, whereas it was 44.5% for the true cleft. The width of the true and palatal cleft decreased significantly over a period of 8 months. The true cleft area decreased by 34.7% from a median of 185.4 mm2 (interquartile range, IQR = 151.5–220.1) to 121.1 mm2 (IQR = 100.2–144.6). The palatal cleft area decreased by 31.5% from a median of 334 mm2 (IQR = 294.9–349.8) to 228.8 mm2. The most important clinical considerations are the reproducibility and reliability of the anatomical points, as well as the associated morphological changes. We propose using the vomer edge to establish a validated measuring method for the width, area, and height of the true cleft.

Introduction Lateral cephalometric analysis continues to be one of the gold standard diagnostic aids in orthodontics, with various software available to enhance this. Aim This study was done to evaluate the accuracy and reliability of linear and angular measurements obtained from OneCeph digital cephalometric tracing and manual tracings in lateral cephalometry. Methodology This is a cross-sectional study done on twenty pre-treatment lateral cephalometric radiographs of subjects who reported to the postgraduate orthodontic clinic for orthodontic treatment over one month. Cephalometric tracings were done using OneCeph digital software and manual tracing method to evaluate nine parameters of Steiner’s cephalometric analysis. An Independent T-sample test was done between the mean values of manual and OneCeph tracing. Intra operator reliability was evaluated by paired T-test after a week. Results No significant statistical difference was observed as the p-value was greater than 0.05 for all the parameters in the two groups. Conclusion The reliability and accuracy of OneCeph software application was found to be at par with manual cephalometric tracing