Macroglossia
Macroglossia is the term given for the tongue when it seems too large for the oral cavity and it may spill outside the occlusion of the teeth into the vestibule between the lips and the teeth. It’s often seen in disorders of genetic origin such as Down’s syndrome.
OMT
HELPS
OM therapists will screen the tongue for restricted frenum, re-pattern and activate all of the muscles of the tongue, and develop a palatal tongue rest position. The oral volume will also need to be increased with expansion of the palate and orthodontics, thus working with a multidisciplinary team.
IF NOT
TREATED
If the tongue is not given proper room and retrained in proper unrestricted function, the patient will not be able to chew, breathe nasally, and swallow correctly which may lead to to digestive problems, OSA, TMD, orthodontic/ orthognathic surgery relapse, and self-image problems.
28. Macroglossia
–Lyons M, Vlastarakos PV, Nikolopoulos TP. Congenital and acquired developmental problems of the upper airway in newborns and infants. Early Hum Dev. 2012 Dec;88(12):951-5. doi: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2012.09.001. Epub 2012 Sep 25.
–Singhal P, Gupta R, Sharma R, Mishra P. Association of naso-Oro-pharyngeal structures with the sleep architecture in suspected obstructive sleep apnea. Indian J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2014 Jan;66(Suppl 1):81-7. doi: 10.1007/ s12070-011-0326-3. Epub 2011 Nov 6.