The HealthyStart® system at Tri-City Dental Care of Cerritos is a noninvasive alternative to traditional orthodontics that works with your child’s natural growth and development.
It helps guide their teeth into proper alignment while addressing common signs of sleep-disordered breathing. By focusing on early intervention, HealthyStart treatment in Cerritos, CA can help reduce the need for more extensive orthodontic treatment in the future.
Research shows that up to 15% of children have some form of sleep-disordered breathing, while HealthyStart documentation indicates that 9 in 10 children have symptoms. An estimated 90% of cases remain undiagnosed because symptoms often are misattributed to psychological or emotional issues. Symptoms in children are best categorized by nighttime and daytime issues:
The primary cause in children is an upper airway obstruction during sleep, most commonly due to enlarged tonsils and adenoids that narrow the airway. Other risk factors include excess fat deposits in the neck in adolescents, allergies or asthma, facial anatomical abnormalities, and tongue-tie in infants involving a restrictive labial frenum.
HealthyStart appliances are typically worn while sleeping and, in some cases, for a few hours during the day to help guide the position of the jaws, teeth, and tongue.
Mouth-breathing treatment for kids at Tri-City Dental Care of Cerritos may also include simple exercises to encourage proper oral and facial muscle function. By promoting healthy jaw development and improving tongue posture, HealthyStart helps create a more open airway for better breathing during sleep while often preventing the need for future braces.
This is a uniquely designed, night-friendly device that blends myofunctional therapy, orthodontic guidance, and orthopedic growth support. It’s designed to encourage proper tongue position and close the lips, thereby helping to eliminate mouth breathing and improper habits.
This soft, comfortable appliance is usually worn at night while sleeping. The guiding device helps permanent teeth erupt into their ideal positions while guiding the development of a healthy, well-aligned smile.
This appliance accomplishes children’s teeth straightening without braces in Cerritos, CA. It’s worn between the ages of 8 and 12 for 2 to 4 hours during the day and at night to achieve the desired occlusal result.
Treatment can begin as early as age 2, but ideally before age 7, because your child’s jaw is most malleable during that timeframe.
HealthyStart appliances are made of colorful vinyl resin that is highly resilient and deforms little when compressed. Compared to similar appliances, they hold up better with wear according to research studies.
Yes, the appliances are based on more than 50 years of comprehensive research by orthodontist Dr. Earl Bergersen. In the 1960s, he began developing more predictable orthodontic solutions for children with fewer mechanics and more stable results, culminating in HealthyStart by Ortho-Tain®.
HealthyStart has been used by millions of children without any reported adverse side effects. Instead, this treatment consistently provides numerous benefits for the teeth, jaws, airway, and developing facial bone structure.
While the soft appliances are generally comfortable to wear, mild fatigue or a dull jaw ache can occur during the first few days as muscles adjust.
Results indicate more than 90% of children don’t need braces after HealthyStart. For the few that do, it’s usually to correct minor tooth rotation and only takes 2 to 4 months to achieve proper alignment.
Yes, regular dental check-ups at Tri-City Dental Care of Cerritos are necessary to monitor your child’s progress and ensure HealthyStart is working effectively. If needed, our dentists will make minor adjustments to ensure optimal results.
