International Journal of Orofacial Myology

It is incumbent upon the orofacial myologist to evaluate the presenting client's occlusion and detect any behaviors which may be influencing the alignment of the dentition or interfering with the treatment plan of the referral source. In order to accomplish these tasks, it is necessary to share some common terminology and to effectively communicate between all the participants involved in the treatment plan. The purpose of this article is to assist in accomplishing these goals.

Valuable information is available to clinicians both from research articles, and reports from clinicians. Both sources have limitations. Research, with the exception of longitudinal studies, tends to isolate a variable or two from the whole, limiting its usefulness. Clinical techniques reported are sometimes biased, and perform well for certain therapists in certain settings, and not so well for others. Interrelationships are important among variables such as dentition, anatomy, physiology, oral muscle functions, oral rest postures, eating, and speech...

The use of tools and other objects in articulation therapy has been bundled into new groups of activities called "nonspeech oral motor exercises" (NSOME) and 'nonspeech oral motor treatments' (NSOMT) by some authors. The purveyors of these new terms suggest that there is no proof that such objects aid speech learning, and they have cautioned students and professionals about their use. Speech-language pathologists are trying to reconcile these cautions with basic Van Riper type therapy routines. The purpose of this literature review was to summarize the ways in which tools/objects were used by Van Riper and other speech professionals between 1939 and 1968...

Disabled children suffer not only from their primary disease, but also from other complications, including food refusal. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the relationship between these conditions and food refusal in disabled children. The effectiveness of feeding therapy in treating food refusal was also examined. The study subjects were 67 disabled children (35 boys and 32 girls; mean age at initial examination: 6.5 years, SD: 6.0 years) who attended the Nippon Dental University Hospital between April 2004 and August 2008...

The purpose of this study was to verify the inter-rater agreement level as a means of obtaining an efficiency measure of a standard mastication evaluation through video recordings. The studied population included oral breathing children and teenagers with maxillary atresia. The chewing aspects studied were mode of chewing and preferential chewing side. A white tag was placed on half the subjects' chins while the recordings were made. Two expert evaluators analyzed 54 video recordings at regular viewing speed...

OBJECTIVE: evaluate the possible correlation with the radiographic position of the hyoid bone and mandibular angle in lateral radiographs of children with atypical deglutition. STUDY DESIGN: This was an observational study using cephalometric analysis of lateral teleradiographs for the distances of H-MP (hyoid to mandibular plane). Spearman's correlation analysis was performed with MA (mandibular angle) in two groups: the experimental group with atypical deglutition and the control group normal deglutition...

This article addresses many myths that have persisted over the years in dentistry and orofacial myology regarding the nature of orofacial myofunctional disorders (OMD's). Myths include 1) the concept that the term "tongue thrusting" includes the rest posture; 2) that there is an excessive amount of pressure exerted against the anterior teeth in swallows, that swallowing pressures add up, and the frequency of swallowing has an impact on the dentition; 3) the idea that the tongue is the strongest muscle in the body; 4) the view that a muscle will be the winner in any tug of war between muscle and bone; 5) the claim that a tongue thrust can cause an open bite malocclusion; 6) the claim that a tongue thrust can cause a Class II malocclusion; 7) the claim that the tongue molds the palatal vault; 8) the notion that a low tongue tip posture at rest presents a problem; and 9) the claim that OMD's represent a muscle imbalance that can be brought into balance with therapy...

These milestones of the history of the International Association of Orofacial Myology (IAOM), its founders and many of the major contributors are presented in this article. Personal reflections are provided by individuals who were instrumental in the formation of IAOM.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

This article emphasizes the critical need for information specifically regarding the topic of retained sucking behaviors. The study aimed to confirm results provided by Van Norman of 723 subjects in 1997. Parent surveys were collected on 441 subjects who received an orofacial myofunctional treatment program provided by one certified orofacial myologist. Results of this study do confirm that retained digit sucking behavior may be addressed successfully and expediently by a program based on positive behavior modification techniques...

The tongue plays an important role in the functions of speech, mastication, swallowing, and breathing. The tongue helps in the maintenance of proper dental alignment and arch stability. Adequate strength is essential for the tongue to perform these tasks. Recently the Biomechanical Engineering Group from Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil, developed a device to improve tongue strength evaluation. The purpose of this study is to describe and compare the main results obtained in tongue protrusion force measurements in different age groups using this new device...

The purpose of this study was to identify and compare the results of the findings from speech-language pathology evaluations for orofacial function including tongue and lip rest postures, tonus, articulation and speech, voice and language, chewing, and deglutition in children who had a history of mouth breathing. The diagnoses for mouth breathing included: allergic rhinitis, adenoidal hypertrophy, allergic rhinitis with adenoidal hypertrophy; and/or functional mouth breathing. This study was conducted with on 414 subjects of both genders, from 2 to 16-years old...

UNLABELLED: Atypical deglutition (tongue thrust swallowing) has been thought by some to be an etiological factor related to dental malocclusion, especially changes related to excessive increase in vertical facial growth. The purpose of this study was to investigate this possible relationship between atypical deglutition and vertical facial growth by documenting the lower, middle and upper facial areas of children with atypical deglutition. 55 lateral cephalometric radiographs were analyzed and measured in each of two groups of subjects according to standardized facial plane angles between the (I) palatal plane and mandibular plane, (II) palatal plane and occlusal plane, (III) mandibular plane and occlusal plane, (IV) skull base and Frankfurt plane, and (V) mandibular angle...

Deviations in muscle tone are presumed to accompany speech motor control deficits in select forms of dysarthria, although there is little confirmation of these associations. For patients experiencing neuromuscular impairments, therapeutic interventions and/or principles have been devised to alleviate tone deviations where they occur and to prevent the development or exacerbation of tone deviations. Potentially therapeutic effects of these interventions on muscle tone in the speech musculature have not been studied empirically...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

This article presents an overview of the current research literature that reveals some controversy, discussion of the need for more research, and report of some definitive success. In addition, four case studies of hair pulling and thumb-sucking are highlighted.

UNLABELLED: The anthropometric orofacial measurements of mouth-breathing children were compared to those of children with no history of speech-language disorders, according to age. METHODS: 100 children participated, both males and females, with ages ranging from 7 to 11 years and 11 months, leukoderm, in mixed dentition period, with a mouth-breathing diagnosis. The control group was comprised of 254 children, of both sexes, with ages ranging from 7 to 11 years and 11 months, leukoderm, in mixed dentition period, with no history of speech-language disorders...

In this study the relationship between the functional vertical labial pressure and aging during ingestion in the elderly is examined. The subjects were 84 community-dwelling elderly (mean: 79.4 years old), 109 elderly needing long term care (mean: 81.3 years old), and 59 healthy young adults (mean: 32.0 years old) as control. Labial pressure was measured with a pressure sensor embedded in acrylic plate. There was no correlation between age and labial pressure or the coefficient of variation of labial pressure during ingestion...

Peripheral facial paralysis (PFP) usually affects the facial nerve in part or in whole on one side of the face. Most patients with acute PFP find it difficult to chew on the paralyzed side, especially due to compromised buccinator function. In addition, the sagging of the ipsilateral lip commissure tends to compromise lip competence. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of long-standing PFP upon mastication, relating to clinical mastication sidedness as determined by clinical and electromyographic activity of the masseters...