Palatal expansion is not just for kids anymore and we have many options for adults who are suffering from one or all of the following conditions:

  1. Poor nasal breathing
  2. Mouth breathing
  3. Past failed or relapsed braces or Invisalign
  4. Poor sleep. If you wake up still tired after 8 hours of sleep, then this is for you.
  5. Poor tongue space and “scalloped tongue.” If you feel like your tongue does not fit in your mouth when you close it, then this is for you
  6. Narrow smile. If you have space between your smile and your cheek (we call “dark buccal corridors”), then this is for you
  7. Teeth clenching especially at night. Poor oxygenation stimulates teeth clenching.
  8. Uncomfortable bite possibly with stiff and tight neck and jaw muscles
  9. General tiredness and fatigue.
  10. Snoring and sleep apnea
  11. Poor facial profile

Options available for adult palatal expansion:

  • MASPE Zero – MASPE zero is for adults who need a lot of palatal expansion and orthodontics. People who have poor sleep, poor nasal breathing and poor tongue space. MASPE zero is great because it gently expands the palate without touching, moving or tipping the teeth. Because the MASPE zero expander does not touch the teeth, clear aligners (i.e., Invisalign) can move the teeth around at the same time. MASPE zero results in more space for the tongue, better nasal breathing, wider smile esthetics and a more balanced bite. Read more on our MASPE zero page. https://caugheydds.com/maspe-zero/
  • Flexible functional appliances such as ALF and Crozat. These appliances can be used to improve cranial balance and function, and improved stability in the cranial structure. These appliances are not going to produce much expansion and they are not great when tongue space is the primary goal. The appliances are great with people with a history of trauma and suspected autonomic neurological dysfunction and cranial strains.
  • Open Loop Cricket (OLC) – a hybrid between ALF and Homeoblock
  • Homeoblock or DNA appliances are expanders for adults that connect to the teeth. Both can achieve a small to moderate amount of tongue space (2-5mm). The increase in tongue space comes in the form of 1-3mm or palatal suture expansion, and 1-3mm of changes around the teeth such as teeth movement, tipping, bone changes around the teeth. https://caugheydds.com/homeoblock-therapy/
  • MARPE – the predecessor to MASPE. We do not recommend rapid palatal expansion anymore. MARPE represents an old protocol we do not use anymore now that we are using MASPE with simultaneous clear aligner
  • SARPE – involves surgically splitting the palate into right and left halves, also creating the broad space. This is really MARPE with the addition of small cuts (usually to the palatal suture) to assist in the expansion. Some doctors will do the surgical cuts at the beginning of the treatment but we find that the cuts are usually not necessary for slow palatal expansion (e.g., MASPE zero)
  • LeFort Osteotomy – full orthognathic surgery, often splitting both right and left halves but the front segment of the cranium as well