What is an Orofacial Myofunctional Disorder?
Orofacial myofunctional disorders (OMDs) are patterns involving oral and orofacial musculature that interfere with normal growth, development, or function of orofacial structures, or call attention to themselves (Mason, n.d.A). OMDs can be found in children, adolescents, and adults. OMDs can co-occur with a variety of speech and swallowing disorders.
"The study and treatment of oral and facial muscles as they relate to speech, dentition, chewing/bolus collection, swallowing and overall mental and physical health."-Sandra Holtzman
Signs & Symptoms of an Orofacial Myofunctional Disorder
Pediatrics
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Open Mouth Posture
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Mouth Breathing
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Thumb or Finger Sucking
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Tongue-Tie, Lip-Tie, or Cheek-Ties
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Prolonged Pacifier/Sippy Cup Use
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Speech Errors, specifically with: r, l, s, z, sh, ch, k, g
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Lisp
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Picky Eater
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Messy or Loud Eater
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Audible Breathing
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Snoring
Adults
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Open Mouth Posture
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Mouth Breathing
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Oral Habits (i.e., sucking on fingers, biting fingernails, chewing/sucking on pens)
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Mumbling
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Difficulty speaking at a fast rate
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Difficulty producing certain sounds (i.e., r, s, l)
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Lisp
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Audible Breathing
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Strong Gag Reflex
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Difficulty Swallowing Pills
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Difficulty Chewing a Variety of Foods, specifically meats
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Tongue Scalloping
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Tongue Thrust
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Noisy or Messy Eater
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Snoring
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Clenching/Grinding of Teeth
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Tongue-Tie, Lip-Tie, or Cheek-Ties
How Can Myofunctional Therapy Help?
Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy is appropriate for individuals ages four years and older. We believe treatment of underlying orofacial myofunctional disorders are the reason to many individual's success in speech and feeding/swallowing. We collaborate with a a variety of professionals (i.e., Dentist, Otolaryngologist, Physicians, etc.) to treat the patient as a whole. A Speech-Language Pathologist train in Orofacial Myology can help!
One of our primary goals of Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy is to create correct oral resting posture. Individuals who exhibit open mouth posture and mouth breathing frequently exhibit instability in their jaw, lips, and tongue; thus, impacting production of speech sounds and coordination during feeding and swallowing. Our goal is to improve nasal breathing, lip closure, speech-sound production, jaw-lip-tongue dissociation needed for feeding and swallowing and the elimination of oral habits (i.e., thumb-sucking, digit sucking, biting fingernails, etc.)
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If you or your child exhibit any signs or symptoms of an orofacial myofunctional disorder, we would love to chat with you to tell you more about our program!