Hyoid bone morphology in patients with isolated robin sequence – A case-control study utilizing 3D morphable models

Abnormalities of the hyoid bone are associated with impairment of oropharyngeal functions including feeding, swallowing, and breathing. Few studies have characterized anatomic abnormalities of the hyoid in patients with Robin sequence (RS), e.g. a less mineralized and voluminous hyoid. The purpose of this study was to compare normal hyoid bone morphology and hyoid bone morphology in children with isolated RS. Three-dimensional (3D) reconstructions of the hyoid bone were obtained from CT-imaging of children with RS and unaffected controls. A 3D morphable model was constructed using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Partial least squares – Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) were used to characterize and compare hyoid shape differences between patients with RS and an age-matched control group. The study included 23 subjects with RS (mean age 9.8 ± 10.3 months) and 46 age-matched control samples. A less voluminous hyoid was observed for the RS group with a larger lateral divergence of the greater horns compared to controls (MANOVA, p-value