What Is MARPE, and Could It Be Right for You?
When most people think of palatal expanders, they imagine a child in the early stages of orthodontic treatment. But what happens when a teenager or adult needs the same type of jaw widening, but the window for traditional expansion has already closed? That’s where MARPE comes in.
At Atlanta Orthodontic Specialists, we offer a full spectrum of orthodontic solutions for patients of all ages, including MARPE treatment for those who need skeletal expansion but want to avoid surgery. Here’s what you should know.
What Is MARPE?
MARPE stands for Miniscrew-Assisted Rapid Palatal Expansion. Essentially, it’s a non-surgical orthodontic procedure that widens your upper jaw, also called the maxilla. Unlike other orthodontic treatments, it’s effective in patients whose palate bones have already fused together.
In children and younger adolescents, the palate includes two separate plates that haven’t yet joined. Traditional palatal expanders work by gradually separating these, allowing new bone to form in the gap. By the mid-teens, however, these plates fuse into a single structure. Once this happens, conventional expanders are no longer effective.
MARPE remedies this constraint by anchoring a specialized expander directly to the bone with titanium miniscrews. This bypasses the teeth and soft tissue and allows the appliance to apply force directly to the skeletal structure. This makes palatal expansion possible in adults without requiring surgery.
Who Is a Candidate for MARPE?
An Atlanta orthodontist primarily uses MARPE in older teenagers and adults who need palatal expansion but have already fused palates. Specific reasons why a provider may recommend MARPE include:
- A narrow upper jaw is contributing to crowding or bite issues
- Traditional orthodontics can’t achieve crossbite correction
- Airway-related concerns like nasal obstruction or obstructive sleep apnea are present
- A patient wants to avoid surgical alternatives like SARPE (Surgically Assisted Rapid Palate Expansion)
MARPE achieves similar results to surgical procedures in a much less invasive way.
MARPE and Airway Health
Whether through traditional expanders in children or MARPE in adults, palatal expansion can have a profound impact on your airways.
Your upper jaw and nasal passages share a physical relationship: when your palate widens, your nasal floor widens with it, increasing the amount of air that can flow through your nose.
What are the benefits of MARPE? More than you may realize. For patients who are chronic mouth breathers, struggle with nasal congestion, or have a history of sleep-disordered breathing, a treatment like MARPE offers more than cosmetic benefits. Improved nasal airflow can greatly improve your sleep quality and overall respiratory health.
This connection between dental structure and airway function is key to airway dentistry, an emerging area of orthodontic focus that considers how the teeth, jaw, and craniofacial anatomy affect breathing. At Atlanta Orthodontic Specialists, we take this relationship seriously and use tools like MARPE to help our patients.
What Does MARPE Treatment Look Like?
MARPE treatment begins with a consultation and imaging (typically a CBCT scan) to evaluate a patient’s palatal anatomy and determine whether MARPE is a viable solution. As that decision depends on factors like age, bone density, and the degree of expansion needed, not every patient is a candidate.
If your Atlanta orthodontist does recommend MARPE, they install the miniscrews during a brief in-office procedure before fitting and activating the expander. Following this, patients are generally responsible for making small, regular adjustments to the appliance at home, similar to the key-turning process required by traditional expanders.
While overall MARPE treatment time varies, the expansion phase generally takes several months, followed by a retention period to allow new bone to consolidate.
What Are The Risks of MARPE?
Before starting any orthodontic treatment, you’ll want to have a clear picture of what to expect. This includes understanding the risks of MARPE.
Mild discomfort and irritation are normal during the expansion phase of the treatment, but typically dissipate over time. Some patients also observe screws loosening or failing—if this happens, our team can remedy the issue without derailing the treatment timeline. Affected speech is also normal, but this often resolves as your mouth adjusts to the appliance.
Serious complications are uncommon but can include tissue inflammation around the miniscrews and bone density leading to insufficient expansion, ultimately limiting the procedure’s effectiveness.
Thorough imaging and meticulous candidacy evaluations help reduce the risk of issues and ensure a safe and effective outcome.
Is MARPE Right for Me?
Whether you need palatal expansion or are dealing with an issue like a narrow bite or crowding, MARPE is an orthodontic solution that may be worth exploring. Offering a path to skeletal correction without surgery, it’s a new and significant advance in adult orthodontics that didn’t exist a generation ago.
At Atlanta Orthodontic Specialists, we offer comprehensive evaluations that can help you understand your options and determine whether MARPE or another treatment is the right fit. Schedule a consultation with our team today to get started.