[Treating five cases of Class III skeletal brachygnatia maxilla with the Delaire mask]

Class III skeletal abnormalities are known as sagittal defects and they are recognized by a hollow profile, which is an unesthaetical morphological distorsion often ill--accepted by the patient, a severe disability. Due to the large number of clinical patterns, it is crucial to make an accurate diagnosis. Class Ill skeletal abnormalities involving a maxillary brachygnatia are caused by an insufficient development of the jawbone. Treatment will therefore consist in boosting growth of the lower back section of the jawbone. The external device known as Delaire mask which stimulates growth of the lower back section of the jaw is particularly recommended to achieve this. This piece of research set out to assess the effectiveness of this method based on five of our patients. Outstanding results were obtained, namely alveolar ridge slided forward on the jawbone, improved profile (a cutaneous Class I is obtained), and a disappearance of the occlusion, along with a correction of the inverted backward bite. When adequately prescribed, the use of the Delaire mask, as opposed to corrective surgery, leads to a slow and gradual improvement. Furthermore, results achieved among young children blend into their own natural growth. By resorting to early treatment with the mask, it is possible to avoid falling back on complex surgery, which would almost necessarily be of the orthognatic type among adults.