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Deficits in working memory, reading comprehension and arithmetic skills in children with mouth breathing syndrome:

Rita Cristina Sadako Kuroishi1, Ricardo Basso Garcia2, Fabiana Cardoso Pereira Valera1

  • 1Department of Ophthalmology, Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP), Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brasil.

Sao Paulo Medical Journal = Revista Paulista De Medicina
|October 2, 2014
PubMed

Insights

Children who breathe through their mouths often struggle with reading comprehension, arithmetic, and phonological working memory. This highlights a link between mouth breathing and lower academic performance in school-aged children.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Health
  • Cognitive Science
  • Educational Psychology

Background:

  • Mouth breathing syndrome is prevalent in school-aged children.
  • It is potentially linked to learning difficulties and reduced academic achievement.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate working memory, reading comprehension, and arithmetic skills in children with nasal versus mouth breathing.
  • To identify cognitive differences associated with mouth breathing in children.

Main Methods:

  • An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted with a control group.
  • 42 mouth-breathing children were compared to a matched control group.
  • Cognitive assessments included phonological working memory, reading comprehension, and arithmetic skills.

Main Results:

  • Mouth-breathing children demonstrated significantly poorer reading comprehension (P = 0.006) and arithmetic skills (P = 0.025) compared to controls.
  • Poorer performance in working memory for pseudowords (P = 0.002) was observed in mouth breathers, but not for numbers (P = 0.76).

Conclusions:

  • Children with mouth breathing exhibit lower academic achievement and impaired phonological working memory.
  • Awareness of the mouth breathing association with cognitive health is crucial for educators and healthcare providers.
Abstract

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