Objectives: The purpose of this study was to develop a new technique for analyzing velopharyngeal movement and to investigate its utility. Materials and Methods: Velopharyngeal motion of 20 normal individuals was analyzed. A three-dimensional (3D) endoscope was inserted into the oral cavity, and the movement of the soft palate was measured using an exclusive fixation device. Range images of the soft palate were produced during phonation of the Japanese vowel /a/, and virtual grids were then overlaid on these images. Principal component analyses were applied to the 3D coordinates of the intersections of the virtual grids. The centers of gravity of the virtual grids were calculated, and the magnitude of the shift of the grid intersections during phonation was calculated. Results: The first and the second principal component scores were responsible for the upper posterior direction and the upper direction, respectively. The average magnitude of the shift of the center of gravity was 4.75 mm in males and 4.33 mm in females. Conclusions: Quantitative analysis of velopharyngeal movement was achieved by a method of applying principal component analysis (PCA) to the range images obtained from a 3D endoscope. There was no sex difference in velopharyngeal movement.
Keywords: 3D endoscope; principal component analysis; range image; velopharyngeal motion.