As a parent of a young child, naturally, you may be concerned if your young child is going to get braces. Usually, in such cases, your child may be offered a palate expander. This will help to create more space in the mouth of your child and widen the palate roof.
You may prefer to visit Silver Lake Orthodontics, where you can consult the top Everett orthodontist for your child. The experienced dentists available in this clinic will make both you and your child comfortable.
What is an Expander?
Expander is needed if your child has got a crossbite between his/her two arches or enough space is not available for permanent teeth to grow correctly. As your child is growing up, an expander is the best option.
This will allow more flexibility and space, which is needed. An expander is nothing but a palate, which is going to be cemented into your child’s roof of mouth. A key will be there that will help to make any changes if needed.
Who may Need Palatal Expanders?
Generally, such expanders are preferable options for adults; however, for young children, this is a much more practical option. For adults, it may take more time than for children of younger age.
The following are a few signs that a palatal expander is needed for your child.
- Crowded or crooked teeth: If your child’s mouth happens to be very small, then a palatal expander will create the necessary space to comfortably accommodate all their teeth, which may lead to crowding or overlapping.
- Crossbite: This situation will develop if your child’s lower jaw is wider than his/her upper jaw. The result can be that the upper teeth are likely to bite inside his/her lower teeth rather than on the outside. Using an expander is a suitable approach to align the jaws when patients need their upper jaws widened.
- Impacted teeth: The jaw lacks enough space to allow tooth eruptions because of space constraints. By extending the mouth size, these teeth will be able to establish their natural eruption route through the gum tissue.
- Breathing issues: Breathing difficulty in your child could result from his/her narrow upper jaw that limits nasal passage access. The improved nasal passage functions result from expanding his/her palate.
How Expanders Work
An expander is custom-made for your child and is bonded to their upper molars. Every day the parent needs to turn the screw mechanism that drives forward the age bones in the mouth wall to open up additional space. Stabilization of this procedure requires a duration of 3-9 months.
Your child will face initial discomfort and possibly struggle with too much saliva and space between their front teeth during this process. Afterward, braces will fix the gap. The appropriate care requires daily brushing of the expander together with avoiding sticky foods and ice and non-food chewing habits. The oral expander functions over time to develop proper facial symmetry.
Final word
The palate expander proves efficient in establishing space and treating crowded teeth or crossbite conditions for young children. An expert orthodontist, combined with proper care, will guide your child to obtain both healthy and straightened teeth.