Proposal for a screening questionnaire for detecting habitual mouth breathing, based on a mouth-breathing habit score

Abstract Background When mouth breathing becomes habitual, it can cause sleep disorders and abnormal maxillofacial growth, thus early detection of habitual mouth breathing is important. We created a questionnaire for early detection of habitual mouth breathing using a score based on a spectrum of factors found to be characteristic of mouth breathers. Methods First, a draft 50-question questionnaire was given to 101 random dental clinic patients, classified by dental professionals into habitual mouth breathers (n = 28) and nose breathers (n = 73). The 10 questions that significantly differentiated mouth and nose breathers (p