How Does an Upper Expander Work?
June 19, 2026
In this short video, Dr. Bockow explains how an upper expander works and why it can be helpful for growing children. Using a small appliance attached to the teeth, expansion can help create more room for nasal breathing, tongue position, and developing teeth.
At Inspired Orthodontics, today’s expanders can be fabricated using digital scans and 3D-printing technology, making the process more comfortable, precise, and kid-friendly.
”How does an upper expander work? If we look very closely here. You can see that there is a little jack screw in the middle of this appliance. We glue this onto the teeth, and then we have you, as the parent, slowly turn. Each turn is one quarter of a millimeter. And so as we slowly grow and develop the jaws, this helps open up space for nasal breathing, open up space for the tongue, and open up space for all the teeth.
We are able to do this today using 3D printed technology, so we can see your child do an internal scan, which is a camera on a wand, 3D print, the appliances, and then, the second visit, we simply glue it onto the teeth. It's a very painless process. It's not scary. And expansion itself is very predictable, and it doesn't hurt.
If you're interested in learning if expansion is right for your child, please come see us at InspiredOrtho.com, and we'd love to meet with you and talk about is that an appropriate option for your child."
Dr. Bockow loves to create beautiful smiles for her patients, setting them up for a lifetime of dental and airway health.
Thank you for watching this video from Inspired Orthodontics. Please consider liking the video and subscribing to our YouTube channel. To get in touch with us, visit inspiredortho.com, find us on social media @InspiredOrtho, or send us a text at 425-453-0551.
At Inspired Orthodontics we love caring for our patients! Please contact us to make an appoinment with our orthodontists in Seattle and Bellevue.
We offer our patients in Seattle braces, Seattle orthodontic expansion, Seattle Invisalign, Seattle sleep apnea treatment, and Seattle surgical orthodontic treatment. We offer our patients in Bellevue braces, Bellevue orthodontic expansion, Bellevue Invisalign, Bellevue sleep apnea treatment, and Bellevue surgical orthodontic treatment.