Orofacial dysfunction in individuals with Prader-Willi syndrome assessed with NOT-S.

Objective: The objective of the study was to evaluate orofacial dysfunction in individuals with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) and compare it with a healthy reference group.

Methods And Materials: The Nordic Orofacial Test-Screening (NOT-S) protocol was used for evaluation of orofacial function in 45 (23 Male, 22 Female) individuals with PWS, aged 19.8 ± 9.5 years, and a reference group of 40 (18 M, 22 F) healthy individuals, aged 24.0 ± 16.3 years.

Results: The NOT-S score was markedly higher for the individuals with PWS than for the healthy reference group (3.9 ± 2.1 vs 0.3 ± 0.5, p < 0.001). The most common domains of dysfunction in individuals with PWS were Oral motor function (60.0%), Habits (55.6%), Face at rest (53.3%), Speech (44.4%), Drooling (44.4%) and Breathing (42.2%).

Conclusions: Eighty-seven per cent of the participants with PWS demonstrated dysfunction in two or more domains, particularly in the domains Oral motor function, Habits and Face at rest.