Myofunctional therapy is a non-invasive treatment method involving strengthening exercises for the muscles of the face, mouth and neck, aimed at improving proprioception, muscle tone and mobility. In other words, it is physiotherapy for the facial muscles.
Myofunctional therapy has been used for many years to change and correct the function of the facial and oral muscles and to eliminate habits such as prolonged thumb sucking, nail biting, tongue thrusting between the teeth, a mouth that stays open at rest, mouth breathing, incorrect chewing, or incorrect tongue and lip posture. Doctors also use myofunctional therapy as a complementary, non-invasive treatment for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders.
During myofunctional therapy an individual exercise programme is created to help train the lip, tongue, masticatory and facial muscles and their functions. Programmes are designed both for children from the age of 5–6 and for adults.
Myofunctional therapy is recommended if:
a habit of mouth breathing has developed;
an incorrect resting tongue posture has become established (the tongue rests low);
there is a short tongue-tie or lip-tie;
there are disorders of facial muscle function;
the masticatory muscles are weak or overstrained;
there are temporomandibular joint disorders;
there is a malocclusion;
there are sleep disturbances;
there is teeth grinding (bruxism).
Myofunctional therapy pays great attention to the tongue and the lip muscles. This is because the teeth in the oral cavity are constantly acted upon by two opposing forces: the lip muscles and the tongue muscles. When these muscles work in harmony with each other, the face develops harmoniously, but when the muscle balance is disturbed, the situation changes. With tongue dysfunction, swallowing takes place by pushing against the front teeth – an open bite develops, and not only facial aesthetics but also functions such as speech and chewing are impaired. Another problem that can arise from an imbalance of these muscles is mouth breathing. A young child starts breathing through the mouth, and the tone of the facial and neck muscles and spinal posture change. When mouth breathing persists for a long time, a narrow upper jaw, a crossbite and a retruded position of the lower jaw develop.
Myofunctional therapy strengthens the tongue and lip muscles of children with obstructive sleep apnoea, corrects breathing habits, lowers the apnoea–hypopnoea index, successfully treats obstructive sleep apnoea, reduces the intensity and frequency of snoring, corrects tongue posture, and reduces daytime sleepiness and other symptoms of obstructive apnoea.
According to the latest research, children with obstructive sleep apnoea
develop oral and facial disorders and anatomical abnormalities caused by upper airway obstruction. These abnormalities include a high palatal arch and a hypotonic tongue and lip muscles.
If you notice these problems in yourself or your child, they should be addressed without delay, because orofacial myofunctional (muscle and function) disorders have a negative effect on many processes in the face:
chewing,
swallowing,
speech,
temporomandibular joint movements,
growth and development of the facial skeleton,
stability of orthodontic treatment results,
facial aesthetics.
Myofunctional therapy includes:
Individually performed lip and tongue exercises (treatment carried out together with facial muscle physiotherapy).
Elimination of faulty patterns and harmful habits (restoring nasal breathing, giving up finger or dummy sucking).
The exercises in this therapy are not complicated, but they require patience, precision and motivation. Treatment may take around 6 months. The first months of therapy are especially important, as new motor skills are being formed in the face. Most of the work is done at home by the patient – physiotherapists guide them through the process, put together exercise sets, increase the exercise load, monitor how the patient’s condition is changing and adjust the treatment plan when needed. Doing the home exercises brings remarkable results: sleep quality improves, the bite is corrected, breathing is restored, snoring disappears, bruxism decreases, jaw pain goes away, posture is corrected and the risk of infections falls.