Relationship between mandibular deviation and ocular convergence

Recent studies have confirmed the relationship between head posture, mandibular position and visual

focusing. A case-controlled study was conducted to assess the occurrence of ocular convergence

defects between subjects with functional mandibular latero-deviation and healthy subjects in pediatric

age. Sixty subjects (the study group) presented mandibular latero-deviation classified as functional

according to the use of a clinical examination and frontal and basal tele-radiography. Sixty subjects

without functional mandibular laterodeviation (control group) were selected randomly from all

subjects seeking pediatric dental care and matched by gender and age to study group. All one hundred

and twenty subjects were submitted to orthoptic tests performed by the same operator. These results

seemed to confirm that in mandibular latero-deviation subjects ocular convergence defects occurred

in greater frequency than in controls underlining the importance of role of pediatric dentistry among

interdisciplinary cooperation.

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