Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy and Thumb Sucking

So what is Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy ?

Orofacial myofunctional therapy, uses regular exercises and reminder techniques to improve muscle tone and function of the orofacial muscles, ie. the muscles of the mouth, face and neck.

At brush 32 Dental Care, our orofacial myologist can prescribe non-invasive, painless exercises that retrain and strengthen the muscles of the tongue, lips, cheeks, jaw and face.

Following therapy, our goal is to correct orofacial muscle function and posture, improve muscular tone and orofacial development, promote nasal breathing and to eliminate non-nutritive sucking and chewing habits.

Orofacial myofunctional disorders

Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders or OMDs occur when there is an abnormal, adaptive pattern that develops within the tongue, lips, jaw, and facial muscles.

Commonly, these patterns are established following the adaptation of facial muscles and their functions that is most commonly subsequent to inadequate nasal breathing, or chronic mouth breathing.

Other factors include:

  • Extended thumb, finger, tongue or pacifier sucking

  • Oral Habits such as nail biting, cheek or lip biting, chewing on clothes or blankets

  • Restricted airway

  • Structural or physiological anomalies such as a restrictive tongue frenum (tongue-tie)

  • Neurological or developmental abnormalities

Signs and symptoms

Orofacial myofunctional disorders (OMD) symptoms can vary significantly from case-to-case and may also range in severity. Some notable signs and symptoms of an OMD include:

  • Speech difficulty or a lisp

    Sometimes, someone affected by an OMD may struggle to pronounce or clearly articulate certain letter sounds. These challenges may exist independently or in addition to a frontal lisp.

  • Dental abnormalities

    The presence of these dental abnormalities may indicate an OMD is present:

    An open bite or significant overbite, abnormal development or narrow dental arches, cosmetic issues such as flaring of the front teeth (overjet), misaligned teeth and improperly aligned bite (malocclusion) and tongue thrusting.

  • Development of mouth breath

    This is the most commonly noted factor in OMDs. When nasal breathing is affected or impeded, the body naturally reacts and adapts to ensure enough oxygen makes its way into the lungs. The long-term effects of breathing through the mouth can be significant and severe, often resulting in changes to the resting placement of the lips, tongue, and jaw.

  • Difficulties with eating

    OMDs may also affect an individual’s ability to appropriately and correctly eat and drink. This can result in prolonged meal times and significant spillage of food and liquid from the mouth. Noisy eating and chewing can also be an issue.

Impacts

If poor muscular tone or muscle dysfunction occurs it can have a number of negative impacts that affect:

  • Breathing

  • Speech

  • Posture

  • Sleeping

  • Chewing/Eating

  • Swallowing

  • Oral Hygiene

  • Facial skeletal development and growth

  • Facial aesthetics

Abnormal breathing during sleep is linked to increased risk of behavioural problems in children such as poor concentration, hyperactivity and ADHD-type behaviours

The course of treatment when working with someone affected by an OMD can vary greatly, and depends heavily on the identified or suspected cause.

Completing a comprehensive orofacial myofunctional assessment is critical in the diagnosis and treatment of OMD’s. All patients at Brush 32 Dental Care are screened and assessed for potential OMD’d by our qualified Orofacial Myologist.

In most cases, improving or correcting an OMD is a team effort.

Team effort

This team typically consists of one, several, or all of the following specialists:

Certified Orofacial Myologist

Orthodontist

Dentist

Highly specialised speech therapist or pathologist

ENT specialist

Sleep physician

Thumb sucking and oral habits

Thumb sucking is termed “non-nutritive sucking” which is when sucking is occurring for purposes other than feeding.

This can happen on thumbs, fingers, dummies, blankets, or other objects and is a common habit among children, occurring in about 90% of infants in Western cultures.

Many children stop sucking their thumbs on their own, often around 6 - 7 months old however, some can continue the habit beyond ages 4-7 years and others may stop the habit but revert back to the behaviour during times of stress.

Happy child

Long-time thumb-sucking can lead to:

Dental Abnormalities

These include an open bite or significant overbite, cross bite, abnormal development or narrow dental arches, cosmetic issues such as flaring/protruding of the front teeth (overjet), misaligned teeth and improper aligned bite (malocclusion), a disruption to the dentofacial development and a tongue thrusting.

Speech difficulty or a Lisp

Difficulty in pronouncing or clearly articulating certain letter sounds. These challenges may exist on their own or in addition to a frontal lisp.

There are several reasons these habits continue. It is essential to identify the influencing factors to ensure the most excellent chances of quitting successfully. That is why at Brush 32 we complete a comprehensive assessment before establishing a Quit Program. We also wait until the child is over five years old, which has been shown to increase success. The child must understand the importance of quitting the habit. Otherwise, they will not be engaged and interested in their progress.

Once we have completed an Oral Habit Assessment and the child is ready, we will tailor a custom Quit Program suited to their individual needs and interests. We ensure that the child understands the importance of quitting the habit while creating a fun and engaging process. This empowers the child and gives them the best chances for long-term success.

Ready to book your appointment with Brush 32?

Contact us today to book in your treatment, or if you have any questions about the dental services we offer.