r/MARPE

Context: 29M, breathing issues, fatigue, recessed jaws. My upper arch is severely narrow due to childhood ortho (extractions + headgear), but my lower jaw is also very narrow and missing teeth.

The Proposed Plan: The ortho looked at my CBCT and confirmed my midpalatal suture is completely fused. However, she proposed the following:

1. The MARPE Trial: Install MARPE and start a very conservative expansion protocol to see if we can get airway benefits.
2. The 10-Day Check: Evaluate at day 10-11. If the suture pops, great.
3. Plan B: If there's no skeletal movement by day 11, stop immediately to avoid tipping/bone damage, and switch to surgically assisted expansion or expand along with the jaw surgery.
4. Conservative Goal: Limit the expansion amount to avoid a scissor bite, since my lower jaw is narrow and my bite is fine.
5. Phase 2: Double Jaw Surgery (Advancement) once the arch is ready.

My Questions:

1. Has anyone in their late 20s/30s tried this 10-day "wait and see" MARPE approach before pulling the trigger on surgical assist?
2. Does this sound like a safe, realistic plan given my fused suture, or should I just go straight to jaw surgery?

Would love to hear your experiences!

Could I hypothetically avoid Getting Marpe and do a tongue tie release and CPAP and this is ultimately what treats my issue or is skeletal expansion in mouth absolutely the only thing that will help?

Is anyone able to see differences in breathing if your tongue gets stuck in airway and they cut the tie and use CPAP, or if tongue is pouring over teeth is this unlikely going to change without skeletal expansion?

This is going to be a big commitment for me and prefer not to go down this route but I just don’t get why this happened at age 25 above all else. I’m perfectly healthy, had braces 7 years ago and my teeth may have shifted when my posture worsened and neck got screwed up, but is orthodontics the only way out to fixing an airway problem, or can body adapt without them?

Day 4 has been the best yet. I’m 25F, have 6 screws, and my orthodontist had me do my first turn in the chair right after install. I actually split right there in the office on my first day! The pain was unbearable for 2 days, but by day 3 and 4 I started to get some relief. However, I keep waking up in the middle of the night (also some periods during the day) with unbearable pain in the roof of my mouth. My mouth does not look infected at all, and at times the pain is barely noticeable. It comes and goes in intense waves. Has anyone else experienced pain like this in the first 5 days?

Thanks!

Hello Marpe Reddit -

I am currently undergoing MARPE treatment and I find this therapeutic to share my experience so I appreciate any feedback from fellow patients :).

I had a palate expander as a kid that was not successful. As an adult my upper jaw was narrow, the left jaw basically looked collapsed and my lower jaw was asymmetrical because it wasn't fitting correctly. My face looked elongated, flat, had an underbite on one side, and my lower jaw would poke straight down in my front view and profile. When I opened and closed my mouth it looked like a pit bull lol.

Beauty vs. Health: My features are big eyes, small nose, fairly delicate looking. But my chin and lower face would throw this off sometimes as more masculine. I was always overcompensating to like "over bite" on one side because it was so uncomfortable feeling and I had a slight speech impediment getting tongue tied.

I was told by several orthos I needed jaw surgery which sounded too invasive. Then MARPE appeared and I was thrilled to have a chance to finally widen my upper jaw so everything could fit in place.

The office informed me that it wasn't really a big deal except that treatment would be 2 years and I would have temporary gaps in my teeth that would look kind of awkward. Being that I always wanted to fix this I didn't mind the length of treatment.

I turned for 3 months and I'm currently in the third month of some sort of Invisalign - you place them under hot water and they mold to your teeth nicely. However...the gaps are not the only thing that are awkward. My mouth feels and looks too big for my face, and it has created almost like hallow/gaunt look. I understand the gaps and some teeth flaring can cause this and I was told this will subside and we close and tilt everything. I also have developed a bump on my nose which I was told is temporary as the sutures have been opened and new bone needs to replace it.

The teeth on the left side finally line up, but now my right upper jaw is far more over the lower side and the one side of my face is larger. I was told this expansion had to be done this way in order to correct and put everything in proper placement because what was the point of doing this at all. According to the doctor it will all come together and look perfect.

The positive I have felt and seen so far: my bite and tongue feel more comfortable despite the awkward large feeling. My cheekbones are more prominent and higher. My mid face has widened along with my eyes - which is kind of cool. My profile "snout" has pushed forward almost like a fox. My face looks fuller and more more oval versus narrow and elongated. These are things I wanted to achieve.

My doctor along with some reddit and tiktok journeys, especially with women my age, have now informed me this is probably the worst time during treatment. Everything has opened up, tissues are settling, it's like a construction site. I trust my doctor but sometimes I get panicked because the process is quite freaky at times. Especially since sometimes I can't recognize myself.

Thanks for letting my share my experience and/or vent. I would greatly appreciate anyone's feedback on their journey - and hopefully it is relatable like mine but with future amazing outcomes! :)

Day 4 has been the best yet. I’m 25F, have 6 screws, and my orthodontist had me do my first turn in the chair right after install. I actually split right there in the office on my first day! The pain was unbearable for 2 days, but by day 3 and 4 I started to get some relief. However, I keep waking up in the middle of the night (also some periods during the day) with unbearable pain in the roof of my mouth. My mouth does not look infected at all, and at times the pain is barely noticeable. It comes and goes in intense waves. Has anyone else experienced pain like this in the first 5 days?

Thanks!

I (33F) got my marpe in 10 days ago to help with TMJ pain and sleep apnea and so far everything seems to be going fine. I’m turning once every other day and have turned 4 times total. I guess my only concern is there seems to be quite a bit of discomfort on my upper molars, but only when I chew. I’m sticking to softer things still but have been trying out some foods that require more chewing and it isn’t super comfortable. Is this to be expected at this stage? I also occasionally will feel some discomfort on my right temple, anyone else experience this?

Please post your experiences with marpe providers in nyc. Even if you were unhappy please post. I have to make a decision which provider to go with. Money is a factor too. Thanks so much!

It is obviously a medical necessity for me (having UARS, sleep apnea, and narrow nasal passage) but the insurance classifies it as just dental. It is in fact not for aesthetics or straightening teeth alone, as it can significantly improve the airway by widening the nasal passage and also creating more space for the tongue.

The Airway Ortho that I did an orientation with is Daia Ortho and they are the perfect place but that shit cost $7k (not included braces or Invisalign) and I can't work consistently enough to even afford that.

My health issues have beaten me down and kept me in poverty so how the f*ck am I even supposed to take care of that?? $7k?? $1k down payment??

Not sure if my ENT is even aware about adult Palatal expansion, but they are getting me set for Submucosal turbinate reduction surgery.

But, I'm beginning to become VERY anxious about it because of empty nose syndrome. Basically making it a pointless superficial procedure....

My insurance is BCC (Blue Care Complete of Michigan)

I went to a private orthodontist in my country, one of the few who deals with expansions like marpe and all that. He looked at my palate and felt the teeth, and said that 4mm is the most I'll get out of MARPE, before it causes bite problems.

He recommended SARPE instead. Does this sound about right? I haven't done a CBCT scan yet, but can they generally estimate how much room you have for expansion without the scans?

I am 24 male how many tads do I need and how important is a piezo? I am scared of any surgery

anyone here been diagnosed with POTS? how did palate expansion affect your symptoms? I week in and hoping this pain is worth it, I’m just sore so far

Im 19 and been struggling with bad sleep and UARS for 6 years, been mouth breathing at noght and struggling at day to breathe trough my nose. I get way too little oxygen, so my skin looks pale and ill, ive got an overbite and narrow palate with high canines, my posture was affected so i got a forward head and forward ribcage from bad breathing.

It sucks to literally have the money to fix yourself, after years of suffering and u cant find nobody to help u, even with money. Many clinics in Iasi have listed MSE or Benefit System in their tarif list but they dont really use it. Pls help me