Tuesday, April 13, 2021

All About Headgears | Types & Tips

Orthodontic headgears, also known as facebow headgears according to Oral-B Canada, are devices other than braces your dentist or orthodontist may recommend you wear, commonly recommended for younger patients with growing and developing jaws and teeth, but also sometimes for adults.


Braces by themselves may not be enough to align your teeth properly, correct bite issues, or fix issues with your jaw’s growth.


If that is true for you, your dentist or orthodontist may include in your treatment plan orthodontic headgears, to aid in correcting misaligned bites, to make space for teeth that are crowded, or to correct other oral issues.

Types of Headgears

Most headgears are made up of both a metal part that fits inside the mouth connected to bands on the brackets of braces, as well as a part that fits around your face and is connected by a strap.


One type of headgear is the cervical pull headgear. The cervical pull headgear device has a wire shaped like a “U” that fastens to the brace bands on your back teeth, along with a strap or band that you wear behind the neck. 


A related type of headgear is the high-pull headgear. This type of headgear has a wire that connects to your teeth, along with a strap or band you wear behind the neck and over your head.


Both cervical pull and high-pull headgears are kinds of headgears that are used to correct a horizontal overbite in children. They function by restraining the upper jaw’s growth.


They are also often used for grown adults to keep the right bite alignment and fix tooth spacing issues that may remain following pulled teeth.


Cervical headgear places stress on more areas and to a greater degree than high-pull headgear, according to a publication from the University of Manitoba and the Canadian Dental Association.


A third type of headgear commonly used is the reverse-pull type, often called the “facemask” kind. Whereas cervical pull and high-pull headgears are designed to correct overbites, reverse-pull headgears are used to correct underbites. 


Reverse-pull headgears function by lightly pulling the top part of the jaw forward, allowing it to “catch up” with the lower jaw. Reverse-pull headgears are made up of one pad that rests on your forehead and another that rests on your chin. The pads connect via a vertical frame.


Reverse-pull headgears are sometimes worn slightly longer than the other types we mentioned, up to 14-16 hours at a time.

Headgear Care and Maintenance | Basic Tips and What to Expect

Headgear has been found in studies to be particularly effective for certain types of dental and orthodontic issues. 


The number one piece of advice to absorb about wearing your headgear is to listen carefully to the instructions given to you by your dentist or orthodontist--and follow them.


If you experience soreness when chewing, know that this is common and actually is a sign that the device is working properly.


It's perfectly natural to experience some minor pain when you wear a headgear. Luckily, if you wear it faithfully, the discomfort usually will go away relatively soon. If not, try pain relievers such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen.


If you have issues that don’t go away on their own or are not fixed by over-the-counter pain analgesics, or a part of your headgear gets loose or detached, consult your dentist or orthodontist right away.

What To Expect When You Start Invisalign Treatment

For many years, traditional metal braces were the most common option to correct orthodontic issues. Dental technology, specifically in ortho...