@article{Cocca_Viviano_Loglisci_Parrini_Monciatti_Paganelli_Livi_Mezzedimi_2019, title={Correlation Between Dysphagia and Malocclusion in Rett Syndrome: A preliminary study}, volume={18}, url={https://journals.squ.edu.om/index.php/squmj/article/view/2991}, DOI={10.18295/squmj.2018.18.04.010}, abstractNote={<p><em><strong>Objectives:</strong></em> Rett syndrome (RS) is a severe neurological developmental disorder characterised by stereotypical hand movements, epileptic seizures, craniofacial dysmorphism and digestive dysfunction. This study aimed to examine the correlation between the severity of malocclusion and <em>dysphagia</em> in patients with RS. <em><strong>Methods:</strong></em> This preliminary study was conducted at the Ear, Nose & Throat Clinic of the University Hospital of Siena, Siena, Italy, from January 2014 to December 2017. A total of 56 patients with RS were examined and grouped according to the severity of <em>dysphagia</em> (absent, mild, moderate or severe) and malocclusion (<2 mm, 2–3 mm, 3–4 mm or >4 mm). <em><strong>Results:</strong></em> All of the patients were female and the mean age was 11.3 years. Eight (14.3%) patients had mild, 18 (32.1%) had moderate and 30 (53.6%) had severe <em>dysphagia</em>. Four (7.1%) patients had <2 mm occlusion, 10 (17.9%) had 2–3 mm occlusion, 26 (46.4%) had 3–4 mm occlusion and 16 (28.6%) had >4 mm occlusion. Mild <em>dysphagia</em> was observed in 100% and 40% of patients with <2 and 2–3 mm malocclusion, respectively, while moderate <em>dysphagia </em>was present in 60% and 38.5% of patients with 2–3 and 3–4 mm malocclusion, respectively. Severe <em>dysphagia</em> was observed in 28.6% and 87.5% of patients with 3–4 and >4 mm malocclusion, respectively. There was a significant correlation between dysphagia and malocclusion severity (<em>P</em> <0.001). <em><strong>Conclusion:</strong></em> A higher degree of malocclusion was associated with more severe dysphagia among a cohort of patients with RS.</p><p><em><strong>Keywords:</strong> </em>X-Linked Mental Retardation; Rett Syndrome; Dysphagia; Malocclusion; Feeding and Eating Disorders of Childhood.</p>}, number={4}, journal={Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal}, author={Cocca, Serena and Viviano, Massimo and Loglisci, Michele and Parrini, Stefano and Monciatti, Giovanni and Paganelli, Ilaria I. and Livi, Walter and Mezzedimi, Chiara}, year={2019}, month={Mar.}, pages={e489–493} }