OSAS during childhood leads to significant physical and neuropsychomotor impairment. Thus, it needs to be recognized and treated early in order to avoid or attenuate the chronic problems associated with OSAS, which are deleterious to a child’s development. Adenotonsillectomy and, in select cases, continuous positive airwaypressure (CPAP) have been the preferred treatments for OSAS in children, and yet they are ineffective at fully ameliorating the disease. Minimally invasive treatments have recently been proposed, comprising intra-oral and extra-oral devices as well as speech therapy. Objetive: to conduct a meta-analysis on studies from around the world that used rapid maxillary expansion (RME) to treat OSAS in children. We performed a meta-analysis of studies using RME for OSA treatment in children. A literature survey was conductedusing PubMed and Medline for English articles published up to December 2014 with the following descriptors: Sleep Apnea, Obstructive, Children, Treatment, Orthodontic, Othopaedic, Maxillaryexpansion. Studies were included in the meta-analysisif they were case-controlled studies, randomized, and involved non-syndromic children aged 0 to 12years old diagnosed with OSA by the polysomnography apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) before and after the intervention, submitted RME only. In all, 10 articles conformed to the inclusion criteria and were included in this meta-analysis. The total sample size across all these articles was 215 children, having a mean age of 6.7 years,of whom58.6%were male. The mean AHI during the follow-up was -6.86 (p <0.0001). We concluded that rapid maxillary expansion (RME) in children with OSAS appears to be an effective treatment for this syndrome. Further randomized clinical studies are needed to determine the effectiveness of RME in adults. Key words:Rapid maxillary expansión, obstructive sleep apnea, meta-analysis.

To investigate the evidence on the association between ankyloglossia and obstructive sleep apnea. An integrative literature review was carried out in the databases. Observational and interventional studies that assessed the lingual frenulum in children with sleep-disordered breathing were included. As exclusion criteria: studies in animals, in vitro, letters to the editor, expert opinions, other reviews. The selected articles were analyzed regarding the study design, sample, characterization of the lingual frenulum and sleep assessment, in addition to the main results and conclusions. Ninety-seven articles were identified, but only 4 met the inclusion criteria. Two retrospective studies concluded that the untreated shortened lingual frenulum at birth is associated with obstructive sleep apnea. A prospective study concluded that there was an improvement in speech and deglutition after lingual frenectomy, in addition to improved sleep. A retrospective cohort concluded that lingual frenuloplasty combined with myofunctional therapy is effective in the treatment of snoring and mouth breathing. The studies included in this review contribute to corroborate the association between ankyloglossia and obstructive sleep apnea.

The current limited evidence may be suggestive that mandibular advancement appliance (MAAs) result in improvements in AHI scores, but it is not possible to conclude that MAAs are effective to treat paediatric OSA. There are significant weaknesses in the existing evidence due primarily to absence of control groups, small sample sizes, lack of randomization and short-term results. Aim: the objective of the present study was to evaluate MAAs in children with OSA. Children presenting an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) greater than or equal to one event per hour were considered to be apneic. This group of children with AHI greater than or equal to one was randomly divided through a draw into two subgroups: half of them in an experimental subgroup and half of them in a control subgroup. In the experimental subgroup, molds of each of these children’s maxillary and mandibular arches were taken using standard molds and molding material. The control group did not use any intraoral device and did not undergo any type of treatment for OSAS. The MAAs used in this study had the aim of achieving mandibular advancement, thereby correcting the mandibular position and dental occlusion, and perhaps increasing the airway and treating OSAS. After 12 consecutive months of use of the mandibular advancement devices, polysomnography examinations using the same parameters as in the initial examinations were requested for both the experimental and the control subgroup. There was a decrease in AHI in the experimental group and an increase in the control group, with statistical significance. These data were used to calculate the sample size, which was 28 children in total in the groups. There was a decrease in AHI one year after implementing use of mandibular advancement devices, in comparison with the group that did not use these devices. Key words:Mandibular advancement appliance, obstructive sleep apnea.

To compare polysomnographic parameters with others from the literature in order to provide more accurate information about Rapid Maxillary Expansion (RME) for treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) in children, through raising the question: Is RME a good option for treating OSA in children? Prevention of mouth breathing during children's growth remains a challenge with significant clinical consequences. In addition, OSA induces anatomofunctional changes during the critical period of craniofacial growth and development. The Medline, PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Web of Science, SciELO and Scopus electronic databases were searched up to February 2021 for systematic reviews with meta-analysis in the English language. Among 40 studies on RME for treating OSA in children, we selected seven in which polysomnographic measurements of the Apnea-Hypopnea Index (AHI) had been made. Data were extracted and examined in order to clarify whether any consistent evidence exists for indicating RME as a treatment for OSA in children. We found no consistent evidence favoring RME for long-term treatment of OSA in children. All the studies presented considerable heterogeneity due to variability of age and length of follow-up. Through this umbrella review, the need for methodologically better studies on RME is supported. Moreover, it can be considered that RME is not recommended for treating OSA in children. Further studies and more evidence identifying early signs of OSA are necessary in order to achieve consistent healthcare practice.