Functional Appliances
These appliances assist the Orthodontists to correct the "Functioning Relationship" of the mandibular arch to the maxillary arch. In order to achieve a class I bite the functional appliance can be designed to retrain the patient to bite more ideally. In time the muscles of the condyle may relax and even allow the fosca to reform into what will become the new asthetically appealing bite. For the Open or Closed bites these products can be fabricated to allow the molars to errupt or the anteriors to errupt respectivly.
Functional appliances very in complexity, from the
Repositioning Splint, that fit on one arch, to the
Positioner a one piece appliance, covering both the upper and the lower arches. The
Bionator is the most popular functional appliance. For the most severe cases the
Herbst, or the
Twin Block are utilized to acomplish these corrections.