Research and Evidence

CPAP was never meant to be a long-term therapy. It’s an excellent life-saving acute treatment. However long term use has a significant effect on breathing. The ‘night-time manipulation’ of breathing affects daytime function. Conversely, when CPAP is removed, the brain has to halt for a moment and consider what to do next. What it does is to revert to the entrenched dysfunctional daytime breathing patterns that were initially the root of the problem.

The take-home messages from this article from 2020 are:

The most recognised way to measure a tongue tie: Dr Audrey Yoon’s tongue range of motion ratio.

Myofunctional therapy reduces the severity of sleep apnoea by 50% in adults and 62% in children

More than 90% of patients (of all ages) are satisfied with the improvement in health after lingual frenectomy (tongue tie release) and myofunctional therapy.

Blocked nasal passages result in significant dysfunction of the tongue, lip and cheek muscles. This impacts speech, swallowing, chewing, posture and ofcourse breathing. It is imperative that children and adults be re-educated in myofascial behaviours. If this is not done, the muscle dysfunctions continue and breathing-disordered sleep persists.

The Homeoblock and Vivos appliances deliver intermittent, cyclical, light mechanical forces intraorally to effect bone morphogenesis.

This research paper shows that these types of forces “induced a significant increase in the mRNA expression of the osteogenesisspecific markers type-I collagen (Col1A1), osteonectin (SPARC), bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2), osteopontin (SPP1), and osteocalcin (BGLAP) in osteogenic differentiated MSPCs [mesenchymal stem and progenitor cells]”

Furthermore, in this article:

• cyclic loading of one suture has been shown to increase sutural strain to neighbouring sutures as well
• Chewing (mastication) compresses sutures. However, by straining the sutures through forces delivered by the Homeoblock and Vivos appliances, it is possible to widen the suture and create bone apposition

Ted Belfor’s article in 2010 in the New York State Dental Journal, exhibiting how the Homeoblock improves airway volume in patients.

This article provides evidence to show that there is a 30% increase in transverse dimension of the upper jaw. The final conclusion is that “dental and facial changes associated with the Homeoblock’ removable orthodontic appliance are consistent with a broader smile and a more symmetrical facial appearance in non-growing adults.”

Dental crowding significantly affects self-esteem and confidence. It also increases the risk of bullying, particularly in class II malocclusions, which are the most common type of crowding in children.

The ideal position for the temporo-mandibular joint is the Gelb 4/7 position.

Orthodontic expanders are necessary to develop the transverse width of the upper jaw. Research, even as recent as 2021, shows that reduced width of the upper jaw is a predictor of multiple site obstruction in patients. So orthodontic expansion is so important!

Growth retardation

Mouth breathing has been shown to reduce growth hormone release which retards growth (Morais-Almeda et al). The growth hormone levels are restored once the mouth breathing is treated. 

Postural effects

Mouth breathing adversely affects posture (Neiva et al, January 2018). Infact, removing tonsils has been shown to immediately improve the posture of mouthbreathing children (Neiva et al, April 2018).