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Since cephalometnc analysis was introduced by Broadbent) into the field of orthodontics, research on the diagnosis of malocclusions and their growth and development has been actively performed Especially, the clanficabon of the morphological and spatial relationship between certam cramofamal structures has been done, and with the cephalometnc method, attempts to predict the growth of the human facial skeleton have been made The endeavor of finding the relationship of some structural deformity or functional m-sufficiency to a certain malocclusion is continued By virtue of the endeavor to clarify the etiology of a certain malocclusion, orthodontists cak treat the patients more effectively than ever before The space problem of nasopharyngeal space, which is one of the etiological factors of maloc-clusions, has been actively mvestmated by some research workers 3-23,28 They argued that the narrowed and/or obstructed nasopharyngeal space is one of the etiological factors of malocclusion They proposed that narrowed and/or obstructed nasopharyngeal space induces the change of oral muscle tonicity, and as a second effect, the morphological changes of facial skeleton occur 3-6, 8-10 Some research workers did not agree to a certain pattern of malocclusion induced by nose-pharyngeal space problem, and it was proved that the type of malocclusion induced by naso-pharyngeal problem vanes 9,10,17 To this suggestion of nasopharyngeal space problems as etiological factors of malocclusion, some research workers disagreed because the correlation coefficients between malocclusions and mouth breathing are too low to be considered as an etiological factor 28 By surveying the interrelationship between the dimension of the nasopharyngeal space and the facial structures with the statistical method, and by comparing the results with other reports, it could be possible to decide whether or not it is acceptable that the narrowed or occluded nasopharyngeal space be blamed as one of the etiological factors of a certain malocclusion
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