Early interceptive treatment can simplify later treatment and, in some cases, avoid it altogether. Palatal expansion lets orthodontists correct a narrow maxilla while growth can still be guided.
A palatal expander is a fixed appliance that gradually widens the maxilla and palate, creating room for the permanent teeth or correcting a transverse discrepancy. Every expander we make is custom-made to the patient’s palate from your digital scan or impression.
A palatal expander applies gradual pressure to widen the maxilla over a 3–12 month period. It sits against the palate and is held in place with bands or wires around the molars. Here’s how it works:
Orthodontic Palatal Expander
Often, parents’ first question is how to tighten an expander. You simply use a special key to turn the small screw in the centre of the palatal expander every day. Activating the screw pushes the palatal expander outward incrementally, less than one millimetre a day. Did you know that the right and left sides of a child’s upper jaw develop as two halves? These two bones — called maxillary bones — don’t fuse together until around or after puberty. So a palatal expander is essentially widening the two sides independently.
Once your orthodontist sees that your child’s jaw has widened the correct amount, the ortho expander will stay in for a few months more so that new bone can develop in the gap and stabilize the expansion.
