Thumbsucking (or finger sucking) can be an appropriate & useful behaviour for young children. It allows comfort & often entertain themselves. It’s often a dilemma as a parent whether to give a child a dummy or to allow them to suck their thumb.
But when should this habit become a concern? While this harmless habit subsides without concern or intervention in most infants by about the age of two, some children increase their thumbsucking to such frequency & intensity that it becomes a social & dental problem.
Thumb & finger sucking are believed to cause a number of changes in the dental arch & the supporting structures. Some of the effects of thumb sucking are:
- Forward position of the upper & lower front teeth.
- Increased horizontal gap between the upper & lower front teeth leading to increased overjet of teeth.
- Increased vertical gap between the upper & lower front teeth leading to open bite.
- Development of tongue thrusting habit, secondary to thumb sucking due to open bite.
- Narrow dental arches
- Smaller upper lip
- Soft tissue lesion on the thumb/Deformation of the thumb
- Short finger nail
- Increased risk of trauma to upper front teeth, to psychological health, speech defect (Especially lisping), middle ear infection & enlarged tonsils.
If the child chooses this habit in the first year of his or her life, the parents should move away his or her thumb smoothly & attract the child’s attention to other things such as toys. After the second year of age, thumb sucking will decrease & will be appeared just in child’s bed or when he/she is tired. Some of the children who do not stop this habit, will give it up when their permanent teeth erupt, but there is a tendency for continuing the thumb sucking habit even until adult life.
The 4 steps are…..
- Direct interview with child if he/she is mature enough to understand
- Encouragement: This can give the child more pride & self-confidence
- Reward system: There is more involvement of the child
- Orthodontic appliance
Initially awareness of the habit: the extent, the consequences & the benefit of cessation of the habit has to be explained to the child. Dental changes due to thumb & finger sucking do not need any treatment if the habit stopped before the 5 years of age & as soon as giving up the habit, dental changes will be corrected spontaneously. The success of any habit interception procedure largely depends upon the child’s co-operation & willingness to be helped to discontinue his/her thumb sucking habit. Thus the parents & our specialized dentists at Smile Up Dental Care & Implant Center seeks to motivate the child, & not to frighten & scold the child.
The use of mechanical aids are basically reminding appliances that assist the child who is willing to quit the habit but is not able to do so as the habit has entered the subconscious level. These appliances usually consist of a frame work placed palatal to the upper front teeth. The frame is placed exactly where the child places the thumb. Its raised rigid design keeps the thumb from laying snugly against the palate. The appliance is either removable or fixed. Other aids that can be used to intercept the habit include bandaging the thumb, bandaging of the elbow, wearing long sleeve sleeping gown. Once the habit affects the permanent teeth the damage is irreversible, which requires orthodontic intervention.
In today’s highly stressed environment, school/college going kids are subjected to various kinds of pressure/stress in different forms. Oral habit can be a form of distressing. Parents should play the role of friend, emotional support & a guide to the child rather than shamming or nagging them. If the habit is causing a dental problem, it is the privilege & responsibility of the Specialized dentists to work with the child & parents toward a resolution of the problem.