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Updated: Aug 30, 2026

Point-of-Care Ultrasound: A Review of Ultrasound Parameters for Predicting Difficult Airways
Published on: April 7, 2023
A three-dimensional evaluation of the upper airway in adolescents
C A Aboudara1, D Hatcher, I L Nielsen
1Department of Growth and Development, University of California, Division of Orthodontics, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA. cabouda@itsa.ucsf.edu
Abstract:
The link between the facial growth and airway function has been a subject of controversy in orthodontics for many years. This study investigates how well lateral cephalometric headfilms depict three-dimensional upper airway structures. Subjects are 11 normal adolescent children, ages 7-16 years old. Airway information over the same anatomic area in the nasopharynx is compared between lateral cephalometric headfilms and three-dimensional cone beam computed tomography (CT) scans. Intra-subject proportion of airway volume to area shows moderate variability. CT airway volume shows more variability than corresponding headfilm airway area.
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