I earned my Doctor of Dental Surgery Degree from the University
of Toronto. As a general dentist I provide services such as
fillings, root canals, extractions, crowns and bridges,
implants, dentures, and minor surgeries.
I enjoy helping people get through a situation that they aren’t
necessarily looking forward to. I am currently a member of: the
Toronto Crown and Bridge Study Club, the International Academy
of Oral Medicine and Toxicology, and the International
Affiliation of Tongue Tie Professionals.
I was a dentist before I was a mom. Then motherhood happened,
and it changed the way I see dentistry. I looked at the way my
kids were developing and the sleep, breathing and behavioural
problems they were having, and I found ways that I could help
them as a parent and as a dentist. I believe there is more to
dentistry than just teeth. For me, dentistry is an integrative
approach and a means by which we can achieve greater well-being.
Tongue Tie
A Tongue tie is a condition that is present at birth that
restricts the tongue’s ability to move as it normally should.
With a tongue-tie there is a tight band of tissue that tethers
the bottom of the tongue to the floor of the mouth; this tight
band may be visible or not. The medical term is ankyloglossia
and it is considered a hereditary condition.
All people are born with some of this tissue, but for
approximately 5-12% of newborns, it is so tight that they cannot
move their tongues freely. This can affect a baby’s ability to
breastfeed and lead to poor latch, nipple pain and trauma,
decreased milk intake and a decline in milk supply over time. In
older children and adults a tongue tie can lead to eating
difficulties, inability to clean the teeth with the tongue,
forward head posture (which can cause neck and back
discomfort/pain) and mouth breathing. Tongue tie revisions
(called frenectomies) remove the tight tissue under the tongue
or upper lip.
Airway Centric®️ Dentistry
When my son started suffering from fragmented sleep and stopped
growing at 18 months I was motivated to learn about sleep
related breathing issues and solutions that I could provide as a
dentist. I learned about appliances that I could make for him
and I made several appliances that supported his airway until we
were able to get through the medical system and get him a sleep
test (aka polysonograph or PSG) which was a process that took
years. Throughout this process I learned a number of things that
I didn’t know.
I didn’t know that a person’s tongue should rest on the roof of
his or her mouth; a thing that is referred to as “proper oral
resting posture”. I didn’t know that the presence of the tongue
on the roof of the mouth from birth is what helps to form the
roof of the mouth (aka palate). A low and broad palate is what
gives the nose a good amount of air space and helps the upper
jaw bone to grow round (to accomodate all the teeth) instead of
v-shaped. I was already a dentist and I didn’t know how the face
bones, head bones, and airway develop properly.
I didn’t know that breathing through the nose is a crucial part
of this development. I didn’t know that there were so many
things that I could have done to help his airway development
starting from when I was pregnant and continuing after he was
born. Now, it’s my passion and goal to inform my patients about
proper airway development and what we can do as dentists to help
guide this process.
So what exactly is Airway Centric Dentistry? It is a term that
was coined by Dr. Michael Gelb and Howard Hindin and refers to
the recognition and management of a compromised airway. Airway
Centric Orthodontics refers to orthodontic therapy that does not
hold back the bones of the face but rather encourage the forward
growth of face bones around a large, unobstructed airway.
I'm so happy to have
Dr. Chloe MacGowan join
us at West Burlington Dentistry where we focus on idealizing
craniofacial growth and development by implementing prevention
and early awareness.
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