What is an Airway Evaluation for Kids and Adults? What You Want to Know
What to Know About an Airway Evaluation
When you think of a visit to the dentist, you probably picture a professional cleaning, checking for cavities, or maybe a cosmetic treatment. But at Metro East Dental Care, we believe dentistry goes far deeper than a beautiful smile. Since 1993, our locally owned practice has remained committed to a whole patient approach. This means we don’t just look at your teeth, we look at how your oral health integrates with your overall well-being. One of the most critical, but often overlooked, aspects of this approach is an airway evaluation.
Understanding the Airway Evaluation
An airway evaluation is a comprehensive assessment of how a patient breathes and whether there are physical obstructions or habits preventing optimal oxygen intake. While breathing is an involuntary action, how we breathe—specifically whether we breathe through our nose or mouth and how clear our passages are—has a profound impact on every system in the body.
Breathing health matters at every age because oxygen is the fuel for our brain and organs. When the airway is restricted, the body enters a state of low-level stress. Over time, this can lead to chronic fatigue, cardiovascular issues, and developmental delays in children. By identifying these issues early on, we can help patients of all ages lead more vibrant, energetic lives.
What an Airway Evaluation Looks For
During an assessment, our team will look at the architecture of the mouth and throat. We aren’t just looking for physical blockages like enlarged tonsils. We are also looking at the functional relationship between different oral structures, like airway size and volume.
Our team will look at the space available for air to travel through the throat and nasal passages. We will also look at the patient’s breathing patterns. Are they a chronic mouth breather? For humans, nasal breathing is the body’s natural filtration and humidification system, and mouth breathing is often a sign of an underlying airway restriction.
We will also look at tongue posture, where the tongue rests in the mouth, as well as jaw position and development. The position of the upper and lower jaws dictates the space available for the tongue, and a recessed jaw can push the tongue back into the throat, narrowing the airway during sleep.
Airway Evaluations for Children
In pediatric dentistry, the goal is often for growth guidance. Because children’s bones are still developing, we have a golden window of opportunity to intervene and make sure their airways are developing correctly.
The good news is that an airway evaluation can be done during your child’s routine dental evaluation. It is non-invasive and involves the dentist observing the child’s bite, palate shape, and breathing style.
You may be wondering how you can tell if your child needs an evaluation. If your child is a mouth breather, that can signal an airway obstruction. If your child is a restless sleeper, tossing and turning, or sleeping in unusual positions, that could be a sign of an airway obstruction. Snoring is another common sign of an airway obstruction. Another sign your child may need an airway evaluation is if they have behavioral problems. Children with airway issues are often misdiagnosed with ADHD or behavior problems because they are chronically exhausted from poor sleep.
Early identification during growth allows Metro East Dental Care to expand the palate or correct the jaw alignment before your child’s bones fuse, potentially preventing lifelong struggles with sleep apnea.
Airway Evaluations for Adults
For adults, airway concerns often manifest as a slow decline in quality of life. Many adults have lived with restricted airways for decades, assuming their fatigue is simply a part of aging.
Some common adult symptoms are snoring and sleep disruption. If you are waking up gasping or feeling like you aren’t truly rested, this can be a sign of restricted airways. Chronic fatigue is also a sign you may have an airway disruption. Another issue adults may face is jaw tension. If their airway is narrow, the body may thrust the jaw forward at night to assist with breathing, which can lead to teeth grinding or jaw pain.
Without treatment, airway concerns can worsen. As the tissues in the body lose elasticity, a narrow airway can transition into obstructive sleep apnea, which can be linked to high blood pressure, heart disease, and even cognitive decline.
A Collaborative, Whole-Patient Approach
At Metro East Dental Care, we know that airway health is complex and treatment is not one size fits all. We take a whole-patient approach, and Dr. May works closely with a network of specialists, including orthodontists and ENT specialists. Parents also work with us to monitor their children’s habits at home. Through coordinated care, we can make sure we aren’t just treating a symptom, but solving the root cause of the problem.
What happens after an evaluation?
Once an evaluation is complete, we provide clarity and direction. Depending on the findings, next steps can include coming up with a treatment plan, which could include a palate expansion or orofacial muscle support. We might also recommend just monitoring a child’s growth over the next few months and following up at their next visit. In some cases, the dentist may connect you with an ENT or sleep specialist for further diagnosis.
Take the first step toward better health.
Whether it is for your child’s development or your own vitality, understanding your airway is a transformative step in healthcare. If you or your child is struggling with sleep or mouth breathing, schedule an airway evaluation at Metro Dental Care today.
