What is Airway Orthodontics?
Airway-focused orthodontics studies the established link between optimal breathing and long-term health benefits. Certain oral habits and breathing obstructions can force the body to compensate for lower oxygen levels.
Research shows that the body’s continuous struggle for adequate oxygen over an extended period of time can mean an increased risk for numerous health problems. Episodes of complete or partial upper airway obstruction during sleep, known as obstructive sleep apnea or OSA, occur in more than 18 million American adults, and up to 5 percent of children.
All orthodontic treatment can and should be developed around sustaining the best airway possible, especially in growing children when airway problems can be caught early. Airways can be enlarged and developed. This is essential for patients suffering from sleep apnea and critical in children at risk for developing sleep apnea. They are associated with medical health problems such as learning and behavioral problems, heart disease, and impaired growth.
Restricted airway leads to mouth breathing, which can dramatically affect facial growth and development as well as desired width of the dental arch forms. This constriction can further narrow the airway through the nasal base, which creates a vicious cycle of further airway constriction.
Signs and symptoms of OSA:
- Snoring
- Mouth Breathing
- Aggressive Behavior
- Ear/Sinus Infections
- Restless Sleep
- Moodiness
- Short Attention Span
- Facial & Jaw Deformities
- Swollen Tonsils
- Narrow Jaws
- Diminished Mental Capacity (IQ)
- High Blood Pressure
- Lung Disease
- ADD/ADHD
- Bed Wetting
- Mouth Breathing
- Overweight/Obesity
- Daytime Drowsiness
- Chronic Allergies
- Enlarged Adenoids
- Overlapping Incisors
