DENTOFACIAL GROWTH IN ORTHODONTICALLY TREATED AND UNTREATED CHILDREN WITH JUVENILE CHRONIC ARTHRITIS (JCA) - A COMPARISON WITH ANGLE CLASS-II DIVISION-1 SUBJECTS

The changes in craniofacial growth and development of dental occlusion were studied in children with juvenile chronic arthritis (JCA), and t reatment with functional orthodontic appliances (activators) was teste d in both JCA and healthy children with distal occlusion. Fifteen JCA children with Angle Class I occlusion and 15 JCA children with Angle C lass II malocclusion were followed longitudinally and compared with 23 healthy children with Angle Class II malocclusion. The facial growth of the JCA children without need of orthodontic treatment mainly follo wed the normal pattern while the JCA children with Angle Class II malo cclusion had a deviating facial morphology, which became more abnormal during growth. During the orthodontic treatment period a slight impro vement was seen in mandibular positions in the sagittal and vertical p lanes in both treated groups, but the changes were more marked in the healthy children. None of the treated groups attained completely norma l facial morphology, but in most children the occlusion improved and c ould be classified as normal. The morphology achieved by treatment lar gely remained the same during the follow-up period and relapse was see n only in a few children. JCA children with minor skeletal discrepanci es can be satisfactorily treated during growth with functional orthodo ntic appliances, possibly in combination with fixed appliances. Even i f skeletal changes in response to orthodontic treatment are rather lim ited, these changes combined with the improvement in dental occlusion obtained through treatment may result in better dentofacial aesthetics . Furthermore, jaw functions are likely to improve which also might be nefit the patient from a psychosocial point of view.