Associations among different orofacial dysfunctions in 9-11-year-olds

This study is the second part of a longitudinal investigation on different orofacial dysfunctions in growing individuals. The aim of the present report was to determine, in 219 children with and without articulatory speech disorders, whether certain associations among misarticulations of speech, craniomandibular disorders (CMD), and problems in oral motor skills still were found at the age of 9-11 years, as they had been in these children at the age of 6-8 years. Multiple logistic regression models showed that certain aspects of dental malocclusion such as large overjet, anterior open bite and lateral cross-bite, and certain signs of CMD such as palpatory tenderness of the TMJ, jaw deviation on opening and bruxism were related to misarticulations of speech. Children with sounds produced too far posteriorly seemed to have a smaller maximal opening but larger laterotrusive and protrusive movement capacities of the mandible than children with correct speech articulation. Despite maturation of the oral motor skills with age, among 9-11-year-olds various orofacial dysfunctions still seemed to be associated with each other. This probably indicates fixation of certain speech misarticulations rather than immaturity of the fine motor control.