Survey Regarding Effects of Mouth Breathing in Children on Sleep and Daytime Activities

Abstract

We conducted a survey to examine the effects of mouth breathing in children on sleep and daytime activities. There were 165 subjects aged 3 to 12 years (73 boys, 92 girls ;mean age 8.3±2.3 years) without a significant medical history who were examined at dental clinics in Kagoshima Prefecture,Japan, in July and August 2017. We found that 27.3% snored and 2.4% stopped breathing during sleep, while mouth breathing was observed in 16.4%. Children who exhibited mouth breathing also showed chest retraction, open mouth during sleep, snoring, difficulty with waking, history of common colds, a runny nose, dysphagia, daytime somnolence, attention deficit, and hyperactivity. We consider that our findings indicate that mouth breathing has major effects on sleep and daily activities of chil­dren. Pediatric dentists seek to contribute to the healthy growth and development of children by care for their oral cavity. In addition to addressing morphological and functional problems, such as caries, hard­-tissue disease, maxillofacial, dentition and occlusion disorders, and mastication and swallowing disorders, the present results show the importance of providing sufficient attention to potential respira­tory disorders.