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Aim: Atypical swallowing is a myofunctional problem consisting of an altered tongue position during the act of swallowing. High incidence in population, multifactorial etiology and the recurring connection with the presence of malocclusions made it a topic of strong interest and discussion in science. The purpose of this review is to illustrate the current orientation on the topic of atypical swallowing, trying in particular to answer two questions: 1) what kind of connection is there between atypical swallowing and malocclusion; 2) what kind of therapy should be used to solve it., Methods: This review was conducted on the Medline database [www.ncbi.nim.nih.gov/pubmed] searching for the keywords "atypical swallowing" and "tongue thrust". We examined all the documents from the year 1990 onwards, excluding the ones about syndromic cases of the central motor system., Results: The causal relation between the two problems seems to be biunique: some authors affirm that this oral habit starts as a compensation mechanism for a preexisting malocclusion (especially in case of open-bite); other texts show that it has a tendency to exacerbate cases of malocclusion; it is also proven that a non-physiological tongue thrust can negatively influence the progress of an ongoing orthodontic therapy. Thereby, the best therapeutic approach seems to be a multidisciplinary one: beside orthodontics, which is necessary to correct the malocclusion, it is essential to set up a myofunctional rehabilitation procedure to correct the oral habit, therefore granting long time permanent results. There is also proof of a substantial difference between the results obtained from early (deciduous or primary mixed dentition) or later treatments., Conclusion: The biunique causal relation between atypical swallowing and malocclusion suggests a multidisciplinary therapeutic approach, orthodontic and myofunctional, to temporarily solve both problems. An early diagnosis and a prompt intervention have a significantly positive influence on the therapy outcome.

The absence of teeth in youths can be due to congenital absence, traumas, caries and periodontitis. The loss of a tooth in growing patients can cause both aesthetic-functional and psychological problems, particularly if the teeth of the anterior region are involved. When there is the loss of a dental element in a teenager it is necessary to provide a quick suitable therapeutic solution, which will be different in comparison to an adult because of the changes related to the growth of the maxillary bones. The aim of this paper is the analysis of the several therapies which can be carried out on young patients with partial edentulism, paying particular attention to the conditions and the indications which allow an implant prosthesis restoration.

The effective maxillary orthopedic protraction is an innovative technique for maxillary protraction in Class III growing patients. It includes three components: a new 2-hinged rapid maxillary expander for a greater amount of anterior displacement of maxilla, repetitive weekly protocol of Alternate Rapid Maxillary Expansion and Constriction (Alt-RAMEC) for disarticulating the maxilla, and intraoral maxillary protraction springs for non-compliant protraction. On average, the maxilla could be protracted for 5.8 mm in 3 months and the result remains stable at least 2 years later. The rationale for this technique is sutural expansion/ protraction osteogenesis. Sutural expansion/ protraction osteogenesis is a form of distraction osteogenesis. However, it still needs to be scrutinized experimentally for the sutural reactions corresponding to the effective maxillary orthopedic protraction.

Background: The authors' aim is to show, through a morphological analysis, how the use of a passive functional plate in hard acrylic resin can guide the growth of the maxillary segments in babies born with cleft lip and palate., Methods: The authors have obtained, with a scanner gray scales, bidimensional monochromatic images of nine babies' dental casts with cleft lip and palate at birth and at the time of the first cheilo-rhinoplastic surgery. A graphic analysis on these images was made comparing the charts drawn by Bolter's points identified on the maxillary alveolar arch., Results: The overlapping of the graphic analysis of the mean of values recorded at birth and after the application of the functional passive plate in hard acrylic resin shows how it is possible to promote the growth of maxillary alveolar arch with unilateral complete cleft., Conclusions: The authors believe that the presurgical orthopedic functional treatment can lay the bases for a symmetric and balanced skeletal growth of the cleft maxillary. This treatment will promote a better future occlusal relationship. It's also pointed out how this functional approach can favour plastic surgery in reducing cleft's size.

Background: Many authors have observed that reduction of the posterior vertical dimension after the loss of teeth during cranio-facial growth can lead to alterations not only of occlusion but also of cranio-facial skull structure. The alteration differs according to whether the absence of teeth is mono- or bilateral. In this paper, the authors present the skeletal alterations after monolateral tooth loss., Methods: An experiment was performed on 25 rabbits, all having undergone monolateral tooth extraction. The experiment followed two rules of procedure: in a group of rabbits we extrasted the upper teeth only (experiment A), in another group of rabbits the extractions were performed both in the upper and in the lower jaw (experiment B), the third group of rabbits was used as a control group. At regular intervals, the authors examined skeletal alterations by means of Engstrom's cephalometric analysis (the asymmetries, the vertical posterior dimension)., Results: It was thus possible to observe some alterations of the cranio-facial bones and to compare the data with those of the control group.

The aim of the research was to study the interrelationship between the primary neurovascular headaches, the various levels dimension of nasal pyramid and the rapid palatal expansion. Twenty-five patients, of both sexes and on developmental age, were studied before and after the rapid palatal expansion. All patients showed palatal hypoplasia and were suffering from primary neurovascular headache. The research was based on the cephalometric and rhinomanometric data. The radiographic documentation of each patient consisted of three postero-anterior teleradiographic projection; the first before application of the disjunction device, the second immediately after disjunction and the third at the end of the contention period. The rhinomanometric evaluation studied the reduction of nasal resistance values before and after palatal expansion. In all patients a constant increase in the values relating both skeletal and dental structures was observed. The nasal septum, if deviated, appeared straightend. The nasal resistances were decreased. The concomitant headache symptomatology presented resolution or recovery in the 98% of treated patients. The results should confirm the hypothesis of the central-peripheral theory of "primary headaches" and the possibility to treat the primary headaches by rapid palatal disjunction in eliminating the stenosis at various levels of nasal pyramid.