Association of orofacial dysfunction and sleep disordered breathing among Indian primary school children.

Introduction: Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) ranges from partial obstruction of the upper airway resulting in snoring to total upper airway obstruction leading to obstructive sleep apnea. The impairment in the dynamics of the stomatognathic system is termed as orofacial dysfunction. This study investigates the prevalence of orofacial dysfunction and sleep-disordered breathing in primary school children and identifies their correlation. Methods: A total of 560 forms were distributed to 8 primary schools in Belagavi city. Among them, 482 parents responded (86% response rate), which included 239 boys (49.58%) and 243 girls (50.41%). All the participants were screened for orofacial dysfunction using Nordic Orofacial Dysfunction Test-screening (NOT-S) and sleep-disordered breathing using the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire (PSQ). Result: A positive direct correlation of sleep-disordered breathing with orofacial dysfunction (r = 0.47; p ≤ 0.001) was noted. A total of 41(8.58%) children were found to be at risk of sleep-disordered breathing with a score less than or equal to eight, based on (PSQ) Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire, and 156 (32.6%) children showed symptoms of orofacial dysfunction based on Nordic Orofacial Test-Screening (NOT-S). Conclusion: The study demonstrates that around 32.6% of children had orofacial dysfunction symptoms, and 8.58% of children were at risk for sleep-disordered breathing, girls having a greater risk as compared to boys. There was a positive correlation between orofacial dysfunction and sleep-disordered breathing among children aged 6-12 years.