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Orthotropic Treatment

Orthotropics is a specific field of dentistry that focuses on guiding the growth of a child’s facial bones in order to correct tooth and jaw alignment issues (malocclusion). The goal of orthotropics for children is to improve facial growth and create more space in your child’s mouth for their teeth and tongue. 


Orthotropics can help correct and prevent several types of malocclusion issues, such as: 


  • Crowded teeth
  • Misalignment of upper and lower jaws
  • Overbite
  • Underbite
  • Crossbite
  • Protruding teeth


At Breath of Life Dental (BOLD), Dr. Maryam Seifi will create a custom orthotropic treatment plan for your child to help them achieve their ideal facial growth and development of their jawbones. 


Do you want to help your child’s jaws to grow properly? Call us at (301) 818-2653 to schedule a consultation with Dr. Seifi for orthotropics in Rockville, MD today!

Facial Growth Guidance Starts with Correct Oral Posture

Orthotropics is designed to guide the growth of your child’s lower jaw and teeth by improving their oral posture. When we say oral posture, we mean the position of the tongue, lips, and teeth at rest. Correct oral posture means the: 


  • Tongue is resting against the roof of the mouth
  • Lips are sealed (no mouth breathing awake or asleep)
  • Teeth in or near contact (proper jaw alignment)


When these conditions are met, your child’s front teeth and lower jaw are more likely to experience proper growth. If your child does not have good oral posture, simple orthotropic methods can be used to change that. 

Why Might a Child Need Orthotropics for Growth Guidance?

Facial orthotropics has become necessary for many children due to common childhood behaviors and changes in lifestyle habits that are affecting the growth of their teeth and jaws. Some of the activities or postural issues that can affect your child’s facial growth include:


  • Mouth breathing (both awake and asleep)
  • Improper placement of the tongue at rest
  • Improper placement of the tongue when swallowing
  • Thumb sucking
  • Weak jaw muscles
  • Diet high in soft foods
  • Seasonal or environmental allergies


These habits can negatively affect your child’s orthotropic development. If your child continues these habits for too long without correction, they may need orthotropics for growth guidance of their upper and lower jaws and teeth. 


Does your child need orthotropic dental treatment to improve their jaw growth? Call Breath of Life Dental (BOLD) at (301) 818-2653 to schedule your consultation with Dr. Seifi today!

Correct Facial Growth without Surgery

Orthotropics is considered a holistic treatment method because it looks at all the areas connected to your teeth instead of just correcting the teeth themselves. Dr. Maryam Seifi will look at the structure of your child’s face in a thorough examination to understand what is causing their malocclusion. This will let her see: 


  • How your child’s jaws align
  • The extent of tooth crowding
  • The shape of their upper and lower arches
  • How strong or weak their facial muscles are
  • Whether or not they tend to breathe through their mouth
  • The size of their airway
  • The shape and position of their lower jawbone


After this examination, Dr. Seifi will be able to create your child’s custom orthotropic treatment plan. 


With orthotropics, we can address your child’s specific oral health concerns (such as  misalignment and crowded teeth) without the need for surgery. Instead, we use removable oral appliances that essentially train your child’s lower jaw to rest in the correct position. When your child follows their treatment plan, they can achieve lifelong results that improve their overall health.

How Does Orthotropics Work?

There are three main steps to orthotropic treatment that altogether will take 36 months on average to complete. These steps are: 

  • Preparation

    Using a removable oral appliance, we can widen and lengthen your child’s upper jaw. This moves the upper front teeth forward into their ideal positions, opens their airway, and provides more room in the mouth for the tongue. Your child will wear the oral appliance 24 hours every day for about 4-6 months. 

  • Training

    The next oral appliance fits on the upper jaw and has small plastic guides that extend downward. These guides encourage your child’s lower jaw to move forward at rest to improve its position. It’s the training step because it trains your child to maintain a closed mouth for proper oral posture. It also strengthens the facial muscles and encourages the lower jaw to grow forward. Your child will wear the oral appliance 24 hours every day for about 6-8 months.

  • Active Retention

    The third and final step involves wearing a nighttime oral appliance similar to a retainer. This will help your child solidify the gains they’ve achieved by reinforcing good oral habits. The patient wears an appliance nightly to retain the position. This appliance is generally worn for longer than the first two because it helps your child learn to properly keep their mouth closed on their own. Once your child has successfully learned to maintain their oral posture, they will no longer need to wear the oral appliance. 

Who Can Benefit from Orthotropics? 

According to the North American Association of Facial Orthotropics, children are more likely to experience the benefits of orthotropics between ages five and ten. This is because by definition, orthotropics is a method of facial growth guidance, which is best achieved when the body is still growing in childhood. 


The appliances we use in orthotropics may not cause significant changes in the structure of an adult’s jaws. However, adults can still benefit from the oral posture training aspect of orthotropics. In the same way learning to stand up straight can strengthen your back and shoulder muscles and make good posture easier, learning where to keep your tongue at rest and how to breathe through your nose can strengthen your facial muscles and make good oral posture easier. 


Are you interested in correcting your malocclusion and oral posture with adult orthotropics? Call Breath of Life Dental (BOLD) at (301) 818-2653 to schedule your consultation! Dr. Seifi will be able to determine if orthotropic treatment is right for your needs and help you find the best solution for you.

Orthotropics in Rockville, MD

Good oral posture is essential to your child’s appearance and long-term health. By teaching them the correct swallowing technique, where to hold their tongue at rest, and how to breathe with their mouth closed, we can help your child achieve the great benefits that come with good oral posture. These benefits include: 


  • Straighter teeth
  • Fewer bite problems
  • Better quality of sleep
  • Improved facial appearance
  • Stronger jaw
  • Reduced risk of sleep apnea
  • Better ability to swallow food


Are you ready for your child to experience the life-changing results of orthotropic treatment? Then call Breath of Life Dental (BOLD) at (301) 818-2653 to schedule your consultation with Dr. Maryam Seifi today! 


After a thorough examination, Dr. Seifi will be able to discuss your child’s specific oral posture concerns and explain how orthotropics can solve them. Help your child take the first step to a lifetime of oral health. Call to schedule now!

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