What Is Airway-Centered Dentistry?
You don’t need braces to have straight teeth.
You need proper jaw development!
Myofunctional Therapy
Misaligned teeth and poor jaw development are not hereditary. Research shows that mouth breathing, tongue thrusting, incorrect swallowing and thumb sucking are the real culprits. Myofunctional therapy in early childhood
- Corrects the underlying causes of poor jaw development and misaligned teeth
- Fosters natural growth and development,
- Prevents many oral health and breathing-related illnesses in childhood and adolescence, through to adulthood
- Reduces or eliminates the need for orthodontic treatment later in life.
Myofunctional Therapy For Children Aged 4 and Up
Early preventative treatment to develop your child’s airway and jaw promotes healthy growth while they are still growing, setting them up for a healthy oral environment rather than trying to force growth later on in life, after growth has naturally stopped.
What is Myofunctional Therapy?
Myofunctional describes anything related to muscle function as it regards orthodontic treatment. Therefore, treatments that promote healthy jaw, facial, and airway development are considered myofunctional, because all of these factors contribute to facial muscle function.
At Dr. Ian Gray Dental Group, we use Oral Appliances, including Myobrace® and VIVOS, for adults and children starting 4 years old as preventative orthodontic treatment to promote healthy growth, proper breathing, and optimal oral health.
Treatment normally involves a series of oral appliances that need to be worn overnight and
1-2 hours a day to:
- Properly develop and align the jaws
- Straighten misaligned teeth
- Create sufficient room for adult teeth to emerge properly
- Optimize facial development and proportions
- Improve long-term oral and overall health
- Teach healthy chewing and swallowing
- Correct resting tongue position
- Promote nose breathing over mouth breathing
What is Myofunctional Therapy?
Our hygienist Felicia is here to talk about myofunctional therapy. Never heard of it? You’re not alone! Myofunctional therapy is the missing link that can help with:
- Chewing
- Swallowing
- Breathing
- Sleeping
- General health issues
Basically, most everyone can benefit from it. At Dr. Ian Gray Dental Group, we use myofunctional therapy in conjunction with orthodontic treatment to improve oral health, physical well-being, and quality of life.
Attention! New Moms & Parents of Young Children Need to Watch This!
Felicia is back from maternity leave and has important information to share. Her newborn son was having trouble nursing and sleeping and experiencing reflux. What was the issue? After seeing a pediatric dentist, she discovered he had a tongue tie and a lip tie. Now that she has addressed those, her son is doing much better. If your newborn or young child is having problems of any kind, it could be related to their mouth.
Myofunctional treatment typically starts by correcting poor oral health habits, including mouth breathing, improper tongue position, thumb sucking, and incorrect swallowing.
Different intraoral appliances are used in several stages to correct the causes of orthodontic problems and align existing teeth and allow adult teeth to grow in straight.
Treatment can begin as young as 4 years old. Older children, young teens, and adults are also eligible for treatment, but usually require extra time and effort for optimal outcomes. As with any orthodontic treatment, compliance is the key to success!
Health Benefits of Myofunctional Therapy
With a properly developed jaw and airway, issues relating to airway dysfunction, like recurring sinus infections, upper respiratory problems, snoring, sleep apnea, chronic allergies, and asthma become less severe or go away altogether. Myofunctional therapy also promotes good dietary and oral habits, helping adults overcome related health problems and giving children the opportunity to grow and develop to their full potential.
Myofunctional therapy is an excellent alternative to braces because it doesn’t just straighten teeth. It corrects underlying issues linked to chronic oral and overall health problems.
Contact us today to schedule a consultation for yourself or your child.
