Obstructive sleep apnea is a sleep breathing disorder that some people don’t realize they have. Yet, whether they realize it or not, it can have a seriously negative impact on their overall health and quality of life. In some cases, the underlying causes that lead to sleep apnea can be detected in early childhood, such as a misalignment in certain oral and/or facial structures. At our Livonia, MI, dentist’s office, we offer customized orthotropics to improve oral and facial alignment and reduce your child’s risks of develop sleep apnea, now or later in life.
How does sleep apnea develop?
Sleep apnea is a condition that causes you to stop breathing while you sleep, and it’s caused by oral or throat tissues collapsing into and blocking the airway. This stops you from breathing for several moments and interrupts your sleep cycle as your body is forced to clear your airway. Once it does and then settles back down to sleep, the tissues will once again fall into the airway and obstruct it. This might occur if oral tissues are overrelaxed, or if they’re too large, misaligned, or otherwise malformed.
How does orthotropics address this?
Orthotropics is a customized system of aligners and appliances that are designed to help guide children’s oral and facial structures as they develop and grow. After a comprehensive examination, we can determine if an alignment issues exists between your child’s oral and facial structures, and to what degree it affects your child’s wellbeing. Then, we can customize the appropriate appliances and treatment plan to correct the alignment comfortably and as early as possible.
What other benefits can orthotropics offer?
With the help of orthotropics, children can develop straighter, more symmetrical, and more proportionate oral and facial structures, which offers several important benefits for both their oral and overall health. For example, proper growth and development will reduce the risks of oral and throat tissues becoming a hindrance to healthy sleep. It can also reduce your child’s risks of needing orthodontic treatment to correct a bite misalignment, and the chances of developing TMJ disorder (a jaw dysfunction that deteriorates the jaw joints).
Learn more about orthotropics and sleep apnea
With custom orthotropics, your child can enjoy several important benefits of proper oral and facial alignment, including a much lower risk of developing sleep apnea. For more information about orthotropics for your child, schedule a consultation by calling the office of James Stewart, DDS in Livonia, MI, today at (734) 425-4400.