It usually occurs with eyeteeth or canines located under the eyes. A palate expander is effective when used at a young age. Typically, pre-pubescent kids use the expander before sutures close or grow. However, the ideal age of getting palatal expander is 12 to 13 years, especially for girls and 13 to 14 years for boys.
However, that does not mean that children older than 14 years old cannot use one. The older children can have palate expanders, but the device may reduce their effectiveness. Remember that if crowded teeth, crossbite, or impacted teeth are not treated or corrected timely, it may lead to some severe dental issues.
As mentioned previously, the palate is a bony structure and makes the roof of your mouth. There is a joint in the middle of the palate that divides into halves. This joint has to fuse during the fetal developmental phase of a child. If this joint does not fuse during this phase, it may cause cleft palate.
Remember that full fusion of this joint does not occur until a child enters a puberty age. Palate expander works like a car jacket that applies pressures to different parts of the vehicle.
The palate has two halves that do not fully fuse until adulthood. The space between the sections can be gradually moved apart to encourage more bone to grow between those halves, making the jaw wider.
According to Orthodontics Australia, crossbite and misalignment should ideally be treated before your child goes through their teenage growth spurt , but no younger than seven. If you're an adult and are interested in correcting a crossbite or overcrowding, consult with an orthodontist because there are other dental options for adults. There are different palatal expansion options, including removable expanders for small adjustments, temporary expanders similar to having braces, and maxillary expansion surgery for more severe cases.
Rapid expansion can cause some discomfort during treatment, especially during the first few days. The more severe the alignment issues, the more expensive treatment can be. However, correcting these issues now when your child is young will ensure their adult teeth are in the correct position and will save them expensive treatments later in life.
The rapid palatal expander RPE is attached to the upper molars. The RPE will adjust to widen the gap over time by turning a screw in the device's center. The adjustment places outward pressure on the palate's two halves, encouraging bone to grow between them. Your child's orthodontist will decide how often to adjust the expander to promote faster or slower expansion. Sometimes orthodontists may adjust the expander once a week or even daily to get the best results.
Removable expanders are similar to a retainer, except they put pressure on the molars from the roof of your mouth. Orthodontists may recommend removable jaw expanders when crossbite or misalignment is minimal. Removable expanders are also more comfortable for adults to wear.
Surgically assisted rapid palatal expansion SARPE , or surgically assisted maxillary expansion SAME , is used in cases where a device alone cannot accomplish the expansion the patient needs.
Your orthodontist and the oral or maxillofacial surgeon will work together to create a custom expander device for your child to wear after the surgery. For the majority of people, including children, this discomfort fades within minutes and is somewhat like the ache in your jaw when you open your mouth too wide.
Using an expander is not painful. There are a couple of ways to know if an expander is working. You can also tell if the expander is working by paying attention to the alignment of your visible teeth, which may begin to shift by themselves once there is more room in the mouth. Yes, using an expander will moderately change the shape of your face. Because your upper jaw is connected to the bones in your mid-face, specifically your cheekbones, you may notice that your middle face will have a subtly more square shape by the time you are finished using the expander.
Any changes to your face shape are not drastic and may even help improve your overall appearance by balancing out your lower and upper jaws. After your expander has been installed, there will be a short period of time where you will talk differently. Because expanders are placed at the top of the palate and the palate is used by the tongue to create certain speech sounds, an expander may mean that some speech sounds have a slight lisp. Any speech changes that occur as a result of the expander will fade once your tongue becomes acclimated to the shape of the expander.
For most people, speech changes last less than 1 week. Immediately following the installation of your expander and after the expander keys have been turned, you may notice that it may be more difficult to eat crunchy foods.
This is normal and will reflect some of the dietary restrictions that are common for people who wear braces. You will be given directions to eat soft foods, avoid hard candies, and not chew sticky foods, such as taffy or gum, that may be caught up in the expander.
Everyday cleaning of your expander can be done at home when you brush your teeth or use mouthwash. You will be instructed to make sure no food is caught between the expander and the roof of the mouth, and to brush and floss as usual. At your check-up appointments, we will do a more thorough cleaning of the expander, especially in the area where the expander key is inserted. Those who are eligible for this orthodontic treatment are patients who have an upper jaw that is too narrow, which can create many different orthodontic obstacles to straight teeth.
You may be a good candidate for treatment if you have:. Your journey to a perfect smile may begin with expanding your upper palate to give your teeth more room to grow in straight and be more easily realigned. If you have a crossbite or other issues related to a too-narrow upper jaw, using a palatal expander might be right for you.
Hard, crunchy, sticky and gooey foods can break your palate expander. Turning a palatal expander is easier than it looks! However, after the first few turns, it get easier and easier to do. Here are the key things that you need to to do to make turning the appliance a success. Most expander keys have a small bend in the key wire to prevent parents from jabbing their child in the roof of the mouth. This creates a fail-safe and protects your child from injury.
Find the keyhole in the expander screw and insert the key completely. You will feel the key fit into place. Give a firm controlled push straight back. Be sure to turn until the see the next hole. This is critical to make sure you complete the turn and have the next hole available to insert the key.
You will feel resistance as the screw turns and the expander applies pressure to the teeth. Your child will feel a pressure at the roof of the mouth and their teeth. Complete the turn by removing the key in a down and backward motion. Be careful not to reverse the expansion screw when removing the key.
At our office, we recommend that parents complete both turns right before bedtime. This will keep your child from being miserable as a school if you turned it in the morning.
Your orthodontic office is the best place to source an extra palatal expander key. Some offices may give you an extra key at no charge. Other offices may charge for an additional key. The big takeaway here is to keep your key in a safe place and not to lose it.
If your orthodontic office does not have additional keys for sale, you can purchase a palate expander key from Amazon. This palate expander key has a large handle for increase manual dexterity and also features a counter to help you keep track of the number of turns that you have completed. A palatal expander does not break your jaw. It separates the bones at the mid-palatal suture.
Think of this suture as finger-like projections. Until a certain age in boys and girls, these projections can be readily separated. After puberty, the suture becomes more complex in nature and essentially fuses together. This is not entirely true. We find the greatest predictability with palatal expander therapies in pre-puberty children and early puberty teens.
This timing is well before the suture has started to mature. After the middle teens the suture begins to fuse making palatal expansion much more difficult and much less predictable. While there are adult cases that are successful with orthodontic palatal expansion, it is not the norm. Adults that need true skeletal expansion will see the best and most predictable results from surgically assisted rapid palatal expansion SARPE. There are scientific research journals that show that there is some variation in the base of nose width after palatal expansion.
The maxillary bones are a part of the greater maxillo-facial complex, so this makes sense. However, this facial change appears to be temporary and not long term, as test subjects were followed up with later after the study.
If you are in orthodontic treatment with braces or clear aligners in the West Valley of Phoenix and have any questions about your treatment, please contact us. Jesse McGuire is here to answer your questions and help you throughout the entire treatment process. At ProSmiles Orthodontics we pride ourselves on exceptional patient care and comfort with braces or clear aligners!
Top Menu Menu. Home Primary Menu. Share on Facebook. Palate Expander 6 months into treatment. Orthodontist will leave a palate expander in for at least 6 months.
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