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Functional orthodontic appliances

Functional orthodontic appliances are dental appliances that work to change the shape of the jaw. In contrast to dental braces which change the alignment and placement of the teeth, functional orthodontic appliances attempt to change the size, shape and orientation of the jaw. Functional orthodontic appliances may be used as part of interceptive orthodontics  to make the jaws more favorable in advance of dental braces. Functional appliances can also be used in conjunction with dental braces to move the teeth and the jaws at the same time.

Types of functional orthodontic appliances

There are several types of functional orthodontic appliances used to change the shape of the jaws, palate and mouth. There are generally named for their creator or have some exotic or futuristic sounding name. Some of the more commonly used functional appliances are:

  • Activator
  • Andresen Appliance
  • Bass
  • Biobloc
  • Bionator
  • Frankel
  • Herbst
  • MARA
  • Rick-A-Nator
  • Series 2000
  • Tandem
  • Twin Block

Popular and effective functional orthodontic appliances

Twin Block – The Twin Block system is used to correct Class II malocclusion with severe overjet and overbite. The Twin Block system has two bite blocks, one for the upper jaw and one for the lower jaw. Despite the size of the Twin Block, it is remarkably comfortable and does not significantly interfere with speaking or eating. The Twin Block is used in a majority of young patients with Class II malocclusion.

MARA – MARA stands for Mandibular Anterior Repositioning Appliance and is another popular functional appliance for the correction of overbite and Class II malocclusion. In contrast to the Twin Block system which requires a compliant patient, the MARA device is connected to the molars and cannot be removed. Therefore the MARA appliance is useful for noncompliant patients, that is, kids that refuse to wear functional orthodontic appliances. Since the dental appliance cannot be removed by the patient it provides round the clock treatment, thus it is remarkably effective.

2000 Series (DMJ and DMAX) – These functional appliances apply constant pressure to the molars and pushes them toward the back of the mouth. This “distalization of the molars” expands the total size of the jaw and is essential in patients in order to make room for non-molars. The 2000 Series functional appliances can be used on the upper or lower teeth.

Tandem – The Tandem functional appliance is used to correct underbite or Class III malocclusion. The Tandem is actually a rather sophisticated functional appliance in that it is connected to a Hyrax appliance and is used in combination with elastics. The Tandem appliance pushes the upper jaw (maxilla) forward which improves the patient’s profile along with the bite.

Bionator – The Bionator is a slightly older orthodontic technology but may be used in many cases because it can be quite effective. A Bionator (related in design to the Corrector) is used to treat Class II malocclusion by moving the lower jaw forward. The Bionator is sometimes referred to as a double retainer because it looks like a retainer that goes over the top and bottom teeth. Since the Bionator is functional orthodontic appliance and not a passive retainer, the term double retainer is somewhat misleading.