Bruxism in children with nasal obstruction.

Introduction: Bruxism is characterized by repeated tooth grinding or clenching. The condition can occur in all age ranges and in both genders, being related or not to other oral habits.

Objective: The objective of the present study was to investigate the occurrence of bruxism in children with nasal obstruction and to determine its association with other factors.

Methods: Sixty children with nasal obstruction seen at the Otorhinolaryngology Outpatient Clinic of the University Hospital of Ribeirão Preto participated in the study. The data were obtained using a pre-established questionnaire applied to the person responsible and by orofacial evaluation of the patient. The participants were divided into two groups: group with bruxism (GB) as reported by the relatives and with the presence of tooth wear detected by clinical evaluation, and group without bruxism (GWB), consisting of children with none of the two symptoms of bruxism mentioned above.

Results: The presence of bruxism exceeded its absence in the sample studied (65.22%). There was no significant difference (P<0.05) between groups regarding gender, phase of dentition, presence of hearing diseases, degree of malocclusion, or child behavior.

Conclusion: Bruxism and deleterious oral habits such as biting behavior (objects, lips and nails) were significantly present, together with the absence of suction habits, in the children with nasal obstruction.