A healthy smile from infancy onward
The functional braces are devices that operate on the muscular activity in order to obtain a therapeutic effect: they modify the growth of the maxilla, help the soft tissues and the face muscles adapt to new positions of the jawbone, put in motion whole groups of teeth and change their angle. They are generally recommendable to children and teenagers in process of growing. They are not fixed (cemented) on the teeth and can be taken out of the mouth by the patient; wearing them depends on how conscientious the patient is.
They are active throughout the growing process, between 9-14 years, earlier to girls than boys. It is important to be aware that an orthodontic consultation from a specialist can find solutions for the eventual growth problems of the jaws, for the occlusion or for the general facial aspect. Only during the growing period it is possible to correct or improve this kind of situations. Growth can solely be stimulated when it occurs. Thus, these functional braces are very helpful in conducting this process.
It is very important to begin the treatment from an early stage, before the children changed the first teeth, as the deviation settles.
A child, aged 7-8 years old must be consulted by an orthodontic specialist, so as to detect, prevent and stop the evolution of dental issues that can appear and evolve at this age because that kind of problems may aggravate or even become irreversible!
For instance, a frequent issue that appears is mandibular retrognathia; the mandible’s position is too far back against the upper jaw. It appears to children that breathe on the mouth because of the adenoids presence, or because of allergies that block the nose or caused by vicious habits as sucking their finger. The consequences of these issues affect the upper teeth which move forward or far-between from each other, also the mandible’s position will be towards the backside, and the contact between the upper and the lower teeth will be lost. The general facial aspect is affected: the upper leap is far ahead the lower one, the lower leap is turned up and enters under the upper teeth, and the chin channel is increased.
Types of functional braces
The monoblock
It consists of a top plate united with a bottom plate. It impedes mouth breathing, vicious thumb sucking habits, lower lip interposition. It serves as a space maintainer and acts upon the teeth and the alveolar processes. Since the device does not allow phonation and mastication its use is limited to 3-5 hours per day and night.
The results obtained are advantageously very stable in time because they operate on both teeth and jawbones, which they model during the growth process, to achieve a sense of balance between teeth, bones and face.
The Twin-block
This consists of an upper jaw plate and a mandibular one which are combined when the mouth closes by an inclined plane. A dental anomaly correction is obtained by using masticator muscles’ forces. It is designed for permanent use, only being taken out of the mouth for cleaning.
This consists of an upper jaw plate and a mandibular one which are combined when the mouth closes by an inclined plane. A dental anomaly correction is obtained by using masticator muscles’ forces. It is designed for permanent use, only being taken out of the mouth for cleaning.
For it to work properly it must be worn at all time: "the appliance only works in your mouth, not in your pocket." It is important to eat with it in the mouth as during the chewing, the triggered forces correct the position of the jaws and teeth and accelerate the treatment. If worn all the time, familiarisation to speech and swallowing with the appliance in your mouth takes only a few days. In a short time the patient will feel more comfortable with it than without it in the mouth.
Thumb or comforter sucking is so frequent among small children that the question whether or not it is a normal phenomenon, arises. The answer is YES, until the age of 2-3 years old. If the habit exceeds this age limit it can become harmful, with unwanted consequences on teeth, on the occlusion and on the face. Stopping these vicious practices, as early as the temporary dentition occurs, or immediately after the appearance of the permanent incisors (6-7 years of age), can determine the spontaneous correction of slight malocclusions. The open occlusion (the lack of contact between the upper and lower incisors) becomes spontaneously corrected after 2-4 months since the sucking habits have ceased. Thumb sucking will stop, but it might be replaced by a less visible behavior: interposing the tongue between the incisors or aspirating the upper lip.
