Effect of Maxillary Skeletal Expansion on Airflow Dynamics of the Upper Airway

Maxillary skeletal expansion (MSE) provides a new nonsurgical method for the treatment of patients with insufficient maxillary arch expansion width. In this study the aerodynamic changes of the upper airway after MSE in adult patients were explored based on three-dimensional reconstruction technology of cone-beam computed tomographic data and the numerical simulation technology of computational fluid dynamics. An upper airway experimental model was then created based on three-dimensional printing technology and tested in vitro to verify the reliability of the numerical simulation method. The comparison between numerical simulation and experimental results shows that the 2 results are in good agreement. The results of numerical simulation showed that the cross-sectional area of the upper airway was increased after MSE, the pressure and velocity of the upper airway were reduced, and airway resistance was also reduced during exhalation and inhalation. This study shows that MSE can effectively improve the airway dynamics of patients.