The lower and upper jaws must be in a healthy closing relationship.
A healthy bite relationship can be described by the upper teeth covering the lower teeth in the form of a box cover.
Disruption of this relationship may cause inability to provide effective chewing function, joint problems, and some respiratory distress.
The most common cause of disorders in the jaw structure is the one seen due to the narrowness of the upper jaw.
If this problem is not fixed, then it will cause many problems to appear.
In fact, the narrow upper jaw can cause asymmetric development of the lower jaw, and thus cause facial asymmetries in advanced cases.
It would be beneficial for it to be resolved as soon as possible before it causes major health problems.
The procedure for enlarging the upper jaw is a non-surgical upper jaw expansion procedure.
Rapid Palatal Expander procedure is a non-surgical method.
It can be done easily up to the age of 18 by using various appliances.
When problems are seen due to the narrowness of the upper jaw, it should be known who will benefit from the non-surgical jaw expansion procedure, in which cases this procedure will be performed and how it will be done.
In Which Situations Is Rapid Palatal Expander Applied?
Changes to be made on the jaw are made in some cases due to bone, in some cases due to the structure of the palate, and in some cases due to deformities in the teeth.
After evaluating the conditions in the upper jaw, it is decided whether the jaw expansion process will be performed without surgery or with surgery.
The following results are targeted in the Rapid Palatal Expander procedure:
- The problem, which is expressed as stenosis or smallness in the upper jaw of the person, should not be very damaging and the person should be able to live with this problem.
- In some cases, the person whose upper jaw is desired to be enlarged may be too young to have surgery and especially to remove the jaw surgery. When this situation occurs, non-surgical procedures are evaluated.
- Apparatuses that can be used can help the expansion of the upper jaw without the need for surgery. In such cases, the non-surgical method is applied first.
- As a result of the distortions and shifts in the teeth, a narrowing of the teeth may occur in the upper jaw. This problem is solved by moving the roots of the teeth and bringing them where they should be. In this case, the upper jaw is enlarged without surgery.
- The disorders observed in the palate structure may also cause the upper jaw to be narrow. If the palate is corrected, the jaw structure will also be corrected.
In such cases, it should be known that maxillary enlargement is achieved without surgery.
For Whom Can Non-Surgical Upper Jaw Augmentation Be Applied?
The Rapid Palatal Expander procedure, which is planned to be performed without surgery, is not one of the orthodontic procedures that is strictly applied to every person.
Depending on the conditions provided, maxillary expansion can be performed and surgery may not be performed for this procedure.
First, attention is paid to the age range of the person whose chin will be enlarged.
Children younger than a certain age limit and individuals older than the age limit are not at a level to be able to bear the obligations of jaw surgery.
For this reason, non-surgical methods are applied for both intervals. In addition, how much enlargement the jaw needs is also decisive for whether the procedure is performed or not.
Too much defect in the jaw structure can cause difficulty in eating, troubles in speaking, and in some cases, even difficulty in swallowing and breathing.
In these cases, while the jaw should be expanded by performing surgery, non-surgical procedures can be performed for people with problems that are not at this level.
Similarly, non-surgical procedures are recommended for people who have problems in the structure of the palate and who have a jaw disorder after the disorder in their teeth.
How Is Non-Surgical Upper Jaw Expansion Performed?
A wide variety of appliances and methods are available for maxillary expansion without surgery. At the beginning of these are the removable, simple mouthpieces with a screw in the middle, which we use for young children.
These appliances, which children get used to in a very short time and can easily use, have a very positive effect on the development of the jaws.
\The most successful results in patients are obtained at a young age. As the age gets a little older, the options for appliances that are fixed in the mouth increase.
After the age of 18, appliances prepared with support from miniscrews placed on the palate are generally used.
When minivida is mentioned, there is a withdrawal or renunciation in patients.
However, the use of miniscrews is a simple application that is frequently used in orthodontic treatments, applied painlessly under local anesthesia, and patients do not experience much trouble.
You should be examined by an orthodontist to determine the most appropriate method for you or your child.
You can learn the answers to your questions such as why the problem in your jaw is caused, how long it can be corrected with the help of what kind of appliance, from your doctor in the healthiest way.
If there is a need for enlargement of your upper jaw after the clinical and radiological examination, a copy of your teeth and jaws is obtained with plaster models, usually by taking your intraoral measurements.
The appliance that is planned to be applied is mostly prepared on these plaster models in the laboratory environment.
After the appliance is prepared, it is applied to the patient and the enlargement protocol is discussed in detail with the patient and the application is started.
Afterwards, an examination appointment is made to keep the expansion under control.
After a certain period of time, the patient can easily observe the enlargement of the upper jaw.
Nasal breathing relaxes and it feels like breathing easier.
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