Dr. Merrily Sandford and her team use growth guidance appliances for a more holistic and biologically based Functional Airway Orthodontic treatment that address the underlying causes of malocclusion and airway dysfunction.

Growth Guidance Orthodontic Appliances are designed for airway and habit correction, arch expansion and dental alignment. They provide comprehensive treatment ideally suited to treat children ages 3-12 years.

The appliances aim to correct the poor myofunctional habits affecting the teeth, jaws and facial development, offering patients a more natural orthodontic solution.

Dr. Sandford and her team use a series of growth guidance appliances that incorporate myofunctional habit correction, while the child is still growing, to improve jaw development thereby allowing the teeth to align correctly without the need for braces.

The fundamental keys to this treatment are obtaining correct nasal breathing, correcting tongue resting position and expanding the size of the oral cavity.

Along with habit correction growth guidance appliances apply light forces to assist in aligning the teeth into their natural position, usually with no need for braces or extractions. The appliances are worn for just 1-2 hours each day, plus overnight while sleeping. A successful treatment outcome requires good patient compliance.

There are 3-4 different appliances that are designed for each dentition. The appliances effectively train the tongue to position correctly in the maxilla, retrain oral musculature and exert light forces to expand the jaws and align the teeth.