Airway and sleep screening from a Board Certified orthodontist, with a team approach that puts your family’s health first.
Snoring, mouth breathing, restless nights. They’re easy to brush off, but they can be signs that something deserves a closer look. Because we see kids during their key growing years, orthodontists are in a great position to spot these signs early.
At B Orthodontics, every new patient gets an airway and sleep screening as part of their consult. It’s one more way we care for the whole person, not just the smile.
Sleep-disordered breathing covers a range of breathing problems during sleep, from habitual snoring all the way to obstructive sleep apnea. It can affect children and adults at any age. It’s a medical condition, which means it’s diagnosed by a physician, usually after a sleep study.
Your orthodontist looks for signs worth discussing.
Usually after a sleep study.
Noticing one of these doesn’t mean something is wrong. It means it’s worth a conversation.
Our intake form includes a short set of questions about breathing and sleep.
Dr. B looks at growth and development, the bite, the tonsils, and tongue size and position, then reviews your answers with you.
If anything suggests a sleep or breathing concern, we’ll recommend a visit to your pediatrician or primary care physician. From there they can refer you to an ENT or a sleep physician.
Any orthodontic treatment is based on your bite and jaw development, and coordinated with your physician when sleep is part of the picture.
There’s a lot of buzz online about orthodontics and airways. We follow the latest guidance from the American Association of Orthodontists (AAO), and here’s what it says:
01
We screen and refer. We don’t diagnose.
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It can be one part of a team plan, but it isn’t a stand-alone treatment for sleep apnea.
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That includes expanders and functional appliances, so we never recommend them “just in case.”
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Our 3D imaging is excellent for planning tooth and jaw movement, but airway measurements on a scan don’t show how someone breathes during sleep. That takes a sleep study.
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Current evidence doesn’t link standard orthodontic treatment to breathing problems.
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We’d rather give you honest answers than big promises.
After a physician makes a diagnosis, orthodontics can be a valuable part of the care team:
When a narrow upper jaw needs correcting anyway, palatal expansion may be part of a plan coordinated with your child’s physician or ENT.
When there is a diagnosis from a physician we can work closely with them to provide the best treatment.
We’d rather give you honest answers than big promises.
After a physician makes a diagnosis, orthodontics can be a valuable part of the care team:
Snoring is common and isn’t always a problem. If it happens most nights, or comes with gasping, pauses in breathing or daytime tiredness, talk to your pediatrician. We’re happy to screen at a complimentary consult too.
Not on its own. An expander corrects a narrow upper jaw. When a child also has a diagnosed sleep problem, it may be part of a team plan, and other treatments, like having the tonsils and adenoids evaluated, often play a bigger role.
Current evidence says no. We recommend early treatment when there’s an orthodontic reason for it.
Some mouth breathing is normal. If your child often seems stuffy or can’t breathe comfortably through the nose, we’ll suggest a visit with their physician.
No. Current research doesn’t show that standard orthodontic treatment, including extractions, causes sleep breathing problems.
No. Sleep studies are ordered by a physician. We’ll help you know when to ask for one.
We’re here to help you sort out what matters and what’s next. Book a complimentary consult or call us at 714.777.4080.
This page is for general education and isn’t medical advice. If you’re concerned about sleep or breathing, talk with your physician.
Based on guidance from the American Association of Orthodontists: Palomo JM, et al. Sleep-disordered breathing and orthodontics: an AAO white paper update. Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop. 2026;169:419–27.
