What is Orofacial Myology?
Orofacial myology refers to the study and treatment of oral and facial muscles as they relate to airway, speech, dentition, chewing/bolus collection, swallowing and overall mental and physical health. Mouth breathing, pacifier use, thumb sucking habit, reverse swallow, tongue thrust, lisp, articulation disorders and orthodontia regression can all benefit from orofacial myology (also called myofunctional) treatment. Children, teens and adults can benefit from orofacial myology (myofunctional) therapy.
What is the Collaborative Advantage?
When a collaborative approach is taken between patient, orofacial myologist (myofunctional therapist), otolaryngologist, dentist and orthodontist, breathing can improve, illnesses can decrease, noxious habits can be eliminated and speech can improve. Learn more here: www.iaom.com/faq/
Patients are referred by pediatricians, orthodontists or ENT’s; others reach out independently for help with speech delays or other concerns. The collaborative advantage at our office is our unique co-evaluation process: both dentist and orofacial myologist are assessing the patient in real time, for the patient’s heightened understanding and to craft a more complete treatment plan. Form+Function is not just a nice saying – we mean it! Working together frequently involves the dentist using Growth Appliances and the orofacial myologist using stretches and exercises to promote a healthy face, healthy breathing, and healthy sleep.
What are the Symptoms?
- Open mouth breathing
- Head, neck, jaw or facial pain or tension
- Recurrent headaches
- Articulation and/or phonological delays/disorders
- Ankyloglossia (tongue-tie)
- Oral habits: Thumb sucking, finger sucking, bruxing or grinding of teeth, or tongue or cheek sucking
- Dental occlusion changes and/or orthodontia regression
- Resting with lips apart
- Tongue thrust
- A forward resting posture of the tongue between or against the teeth
- Poorly controlled swallow and difficulty swallowing pills
What are the Treatment Goals?
- Shift to nasal breathing and normalized respiration
- Correct resting postures of the tongue, lips and jaw
- Neuromuscular re-education to eliminate impairment of muscle tongue function
- Eliminate adverse oral habits or behaviors
- Correct abnormal and deviated swallowing patterns
- Correct muscle patterns of the tongue, lips and jaw during speech production
**Treatment programs are individualized and focus on tongue and facial resting postures, swallowing and speech articulation.
What defines a Successful Outcome?
The orofacial myology therapy sessions are just a part of a successful program. Patients will be expected to complete daily exercises in order for muscle strength, patterns and range of motion to make desired changes with children benefitting from family support to practice prescribed exercises.
We continuously refine our diagnostic skills, referral base (should we need other professionals to be part of our team), and latest assessment tools and therapeutic resources.
On occasion, patients have managed their issues through compensations in the body distant from the tongue and face. For those patients, they may benefit from a referral to our Integrative Postural Therapy(R) work. For more information, go to the link http://caugheydds.com/integrative-postural-therapy/