9 out of 10 children have sleep-disordered breathing symptoms.
Sleep-disordered breathing is a common dental concern that affects children as young as 1 year old. Symptoms of disordered breathing can often manifest as behavioral and may be misdiagnosed and mistreated. Proper diagnosis and treatment of disordered breathing may help your child emotionally, physically, and developmentally.
The body and brain of a child are growing rapidly and require uninterrupted oxygen flow to develop properly. A child with disordered breathing does not receive proper oxygen to their brain and organs while they sleep.
Disordered breathing can be caused by crooked teeth, obstructed or underdeveloped airways, arches or jaws.
The Effects of Disordered Breathing
Recent studies show a growing correlation between children with disordered breathing and common behavioral and developmental delays. Sleep-disordered breathing has been shown to increase the risk of bed wetting and ADHD diagnosis, among many other things.
If your child shows any of the following symptoms, it may be an indication of disordered breathing. Early intervention is crucial and proper treatment can prevent further impact on your child’s life.
- Bed Wetting
- Dark circles under eyes
- Teeth Grinding
- ADD/ ADHD symptoms or diagnosis
- Aggressive Behavior
- Mouth Breathing (day or night)
- Daytime Drowsiness
- Crooked or Crowded Teeth
- Snoring
- Allergies
- Frequent Nightmares
Treating Sleep-disordered Breathing in Children
Dr. Robinson and our dental care team are working to bring awareness to the connection between disordered breathing and other childhood concerns. We help treat children with disordered breathing so as to prevent further developmental issues.
We offer Healthy Start orthodontic appliances for the treatment of disordered breathing in children. Healthy Start is a non-surgical, non-pharmaceutical night guard that fits comfortably and securely into your child’s mouth. Children often need only wear the mouth guard while they sleep.
Benefits of the Healthy Start System
- Achieve a beautiful smile without braces or surgery
- Prevent crooked teeth versus correcting crooked teeth
- Achieve permanent results
- Minimal discomfort
- Treats naturally and works with, not against, child’s facial growth and development
The Healthy Start appliance is designed to realign crooked or overcrowded teeth while keeping the airway open and free from obstruction which ensures your child takes in the proper amount of oxygen while she sleeps. The Healthy Start helps children by addressing the cause of their breathing disorder. The device expands the airway, helping to guide proper development of the trachea.
Depending on the age of your child and their individual needs Dr. Robinson will recommend a phased treatment plan to correct habits and promote natural and healthy development. The treatment is much less traumatic, time consuming and expensive than braces and offers a more comprehensive solution than braces due to early intervention which takes advantage of your child’s natural growth and development.
- Habit Corrector: The habit corrector eliminates or improves current oral habits that can damage your child’s dental health. He or she wears the habit corrector at night while sleeping. With a design similar to that of a pacifier, your child will become used to wearing a device in his or her mouth every night. This step lasts about 1-5 months.
- Second Phase: Your child will get an appliance customized and sized for them to wear every night. It guides the incoming teeth into proper placement, corrects jaw relations and expands the arches to make room for incoming adult teeth. This device is worn for about 2-6 months depending on the child’s needs.
- Final Phase: The final treatment begins with a device that accommodates incoming adult teeth. It begins when your child has at least 4 permanent teeth. This phase is extremely important because his or her adult teeth are forming and the gum tissue fibers are starting to attach to the teeth in the mouth. Healthy Start works perfectly to ensure the teeth erupt in proper alignment while these fibers are still attaching, ensuring the fibers attach to straight teeth. This prevents the need for braces in most cases.
The Healthy Start appliance offers permanent results for your child. Children are able to breathe normally during sleep, improving their oxygen flow and quality of rest.
Call us today at 330-343-2555 to schedule your child a Healthy Start consultation with Dr. Caleb Robinson. With this innovative and non-invasive treatment, we can work with your child’s natural growth and development to ensure their mouth, airway and entire body develop properly.
Pediatric tooth decay is considered a growing health epidemic and affects children as young as 1.
Higher rates of childhood cavities are related to an increase in sugary diets. Children who develop tooth decay early on in oral development tend to have more issues with their teeth and gums throughout their lives. Oral hygiene begins at birth and should remain constant throughout childhood and into adulthood.
A well-balanced diet low in sugar and thorough daily oral hygiene is essential for your child’s oral health. We will make personal recommendations to help keep your child’s teeth and gums healthy based on their age and oral development.
Seal out Decay, Ask About Dental Sealants
Sealants can reduce your child’s risk of decay by up to 80%.
Dental sealants are a safe and noninvasive way to help reduce your child’s risk of tooth decay. While sealants cannot replace routine dental exams or daily brushing and flossing, they can help fight tooth decay in hard to reach areas that often get missed when children brush. Through no fault of their own, certain children may be prone to developing some types of dental cavities that even excellent oral hygiene cannot prevent. This is due to their unique dental anatomy which leaves them vulnerable to decay. Sealants are a simple, ideal way to prevent cavities from developing even in these decay prone areas.
Sealants act as a protective layer that block bacteria from building between teeth and in the crevices of the dental crown. Sealants are topically applied to the teeth and can be completed with your child’s routine exam. After the tooth surface is prepared, a liquid gel is painted on the surface and in the crowns of teeth and hardened with the use of blue light. The procedure requires no local anesthetic, takes just a few minutes, and your child will experience no discomfort.
Caring for your child’s growing smile is essential in developing their healthy habits for a lifetime of smiles. Building an early foundation for good oral hygiene habits can help your child enjoy better oral health throughout their life. Children should be brought in for their first dental appointment as soon as their first tooth emerges, or by the age of 1.