Bad habits
• Habit: it is an action or condition which by
repetition had become spontaneous
Oral bad habits
1.
2.
3.
4.
Thumb sucking
Mouth breathing
Lip biting
Tongue thrust
• It decrease with increase in age
• It is less with bottle feeding than glass
feeding
• It increase with increasing no. of siblings
• More frequnt in high socioeconomic status
What is the effect of habit on
occlusion between the age of 6
mo. -5.5 yr.
Thumb sucking
• Production of negative or
reduced intra oral pressure
• The pattern of sucking is
different some children put the
thumb only others put thumb
and tongue between teeth
What is the treatment
Determinant factors of habit on
occlusion



Duration
Frequency
Intensity
Duration
At which age the child get the habit
The time spent by the child to do the
habit
Frequency

How many times the patient put his thumb in
his mouth per day (day , night, both)
Intensity
• The force used during the sucking habit
Treatment of bad habits
 Clinical examination
1. Type of malocclusion
2. finger
Types of malocclusions associated
with oral habits
Digit examination



Clean
Larger in dimension
callous
Don’t ask the patient if he sucks his
finger or no

The question should be
How many times you suck ?
Timing of treatment
 In deciduous dentition?
Treatment
Mouth breather