Airway Orthodontics in Rockville MD
It’s intuitive that each person must have a healthy airway that permits access to a steady supply of oxygen. This ample supply should exist while a person is asleep, awake, at rest or at work. In other words, the body should be structured and balanced sufficiently that the airway is always fully open, enabling easy and relaxed breathing at all times.
As dental and orthodontic science continue to advance, it is now understood how the development of a person’s mouth, teeth, jaws and face will affect their ability to breathe easily. The better their breathing, the less stress their body suffers. As a consequence, the more ideal their mental and emotional functioning will be.
At StarBrite Dental, we consider every aspect of a patient’s health when they begin care with us. We will, of course, attend to each person’s dental and oral health. But superb quality care does not stop there. It will continue on, with our staff evaluating our patients’ sleep quality, ability to breathe and development of structures around the upper airway. We understand that the structure of the jaws, the alignment of the teeth and even body posture have everything to do with a person’s ability to get enough oxygen.
Sleep-Disordered Breathing
Millions of people suffer from sleep disordered breathing without realizing it or having the condition diagnosed, much less treated. Sleep disordered breathing refers to a group of conditions that interrupt or interfere with breathing during sleep. Among these conditions are:
- Heavy snoring
- Increased resistance to airflow through the upper airway
- Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)
- Central sleep apnea
- Mixed sleep apnea
The health problems resulting from these different sleep disordered breathing problems are many, including daytime sleepiness, disturbed sleep, depressed mood, irritability, study disorders, cognitive impairment, high blood pressure, impotence, behavior problems, childhood obesity, juvenile diabetes, growth problems, and heart disease.
- Daytime sleepiness
- Disturbed sleep
- Depressed mood
- Irritability
- Study disorders
- Cognitive impairment
- High blood pressure
- Impotence
- Behavior problems
- Childhood obesity
- Juvenile diabetes
- Growth problems
- Heart disease
It’s now obvious—healthy breathing is essential for a healthy body! We are focused on bringing the best therapies to our patients and so have been offering solutions for sleep disordered breathing for some years now.
Structural Situations Underlying Sleep Disordered Breathing
It is now understood that if a person’s face, jaws, cheeks, mouth, nasal airway and dental alignment do not develop properly, their breathing may be impaired. That person may search in vain for the real reason for their sleep apnea, restless sleep, high blood pressure or other health problems. We can help them determine if the reason lies in an airway problem and sleep disordered breathing. Once we determine this diagnosis is correct, we then have multiple treatment options available.
Poor physical development can result in a narrowed upper or lower arch of the mouth, long face, receding jaw and obstructed nasal airway. A person in this situation may have crooked teeth that never had the room to come in straight, plus have tongue tie and a gummy smile. An individual with these problems very often unknowingly modifies their body posture as a compensation for airway problems so they can get more oxygen.
Orthodontics as a Solution
If optimum development of the facial bone structure and jaws can be encouraged, then the airway can be opened and breathing can become more ideal. Properly administered airway orthodontics gets this result.
Advanced types of orthodontics can now play an important role in correcting the development of all these structures. Use of orthodontics in this way is referred to as airway orthodontics. In other words, the specific purpose of airway orthodontics is to encourage the changes that will result in an optimally opened airway, both during the day and at night.
This isn’t the only benefit of airway orthodontics, of course. As the nasal and pharyngeal airways are further opened, the person’s face will normally take on a more balanced and pleasing shape. Their body will no longer struggle to get enough air and the person’s stress will drop, which normally means a reduction in cortisol levels and stress on the heart and other organs.
The intelligent application of airway orthodontics can resolve health problems that seemed to have no answer. As treatment options, we may recommend oral appliances for jaw expansion or airway orthodontics to move teeth and jaw bone into a more ideal shape.
Early Treatment
Of course, when treatment with airway orthodontics begins at an early age, a child’s development and posture can be improved, preventing many or all of these health problems from ever showing up. Traditional orthodontics often waited until after a child had all their permanent teeth in, perhaps at 13 or 14 years of age. According to the principles of airway orthodontics, this treatment is starting way too late.
We can now begin making improvements with airway orthodontics while a child is quite small. As the bone structure in the face and jaws is developing, we can help encourage jaw expansion and a more open airway. Oral appliances can be used at a very young age to develop the right position for the tongue and begin jaw expansion. As the jaw expands, there is plenty of room for the tongue to rest in the mouth and the airway is kept more open, both during the day and the night.
Airway orthodontics can also be utilized to reshape the upper and lower jaws and realign crooked teeth. The goal is not a beautiful smile but that can be achieved as a valuable side product! As the bones of the jaws develop into a more ideal shape, the chin often moves forward, the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is in a more ideal position and the tongue no longer blocks the airway. When treatment starts at an early age, there is the greatest chance to guide growth and development into an ideal result.
Your Airway and Your Health
It once was true that orthodontic treatment was only about creating straight teeth and a beautiful smile. But the science behind orthodontic treatment has moved on. Now, anyone administering advanced and innovative orthodontic treatment is focused on opening that airway.
A young person seeing a dentist for orthodontic treatment may find out that the same adverse structural problems that are making them have crooked teeth are also behind sleep disordered breathing. It may be that a person receiving airway orthodontics seeks only to straighten teeth. They may get far more benefit than they planned. But that unexpected help can help them avoid behavioral, cognitive, functional and major overall health problems in the future.
At StarBrite Dental, we consider it is our mission to stay abreast of all the latest developments in dental and orthodontic treatment so we can detect the cause for any oral, dental or overall health problems. For this reason, our dentists and support staff are continually undergoing advanced training. When there is a new, valid dental or orthodontic advancement like airway orthodontics, we want you or your children to benefit from it.
The Perfect Result: Perfect Structure, Perfect Breathing
When your oral and facial structures are fully open and well aligned, you have your best chance for undisturbed sleep, healthy oxygenation all day and all night, and good overall health. Your facial structure will be balanced with a fully developed jaw and your profile will show a well-developed and well-aligned lower face.
We are here to help you achieve better health and that better health for so many people starts with optimal breathing. This is a breakthrough we are delighted to offer to our patients, young and old. But it may be among our youngest patients that we can make the most change and bring about a lifetime of healthy breathing.
StarBrite Dental Has the Experts You Need
At StarBrite Dental in Rockville, Maryland, we are constantly advancing our knowledge and skills so we can offer the most advanced dental technology available. If there is a dental or orthodontic technology that can enable us to improve the dental or oral health, overall health, breathing, posture and appearance of our patients, we’re interested. Our staff are going to become skilled and able to offer it. There are no limits to our dedication to the health of our patients and our community.
If you are seeking a solution for mysterious health problems, disturbed sleep, or you have been diagnosed with sleep apnea, please contact us. If you know someone who may be looking for a solution for disturbed sleep or other problems listed here, if that person is struggling, has not looked into airway orthodontics, suggest that they contact us for an examination.
We may be able to offer the solution that you have not been able to find anywhere else. Call us at
(301) 770-1070 to schedule an appointment with one of our fine dentists. We will listen to your goals for your care and use our expertise to get you on the path to better health. It may be possible that you have never experienced a dental practice as dedicated to superior quality of care such as the care you will find at StarBrite Dental. We invite you to consult with our skilled practitioners and discover what excellence in diagnostics and dental care is truly like.
Contact Us to Schedule an Appointment Today!
*We DO NOT ACCEPT HMO Insurance, State Insurance, Medicaid/Medicare, or discount plans. Fees apply for services.
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(301) 770-1070
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