Modified Palatal Crib Appliance for Habit Correction: A Case Report

Digit sucking is the most commonly seen oral habit & one of the most common learned patterns of behaviours seen in children of preschool age and is a habit of concern as it is an important etiological factor in the development of malocclusion, a secondary tongue thrust develops leading to the exaggeration of the condition. To plan an appropriate treatment it is important to understand the etiology, which includes psychological, physiological and anatomical and planning for behavior eradication is critical for the positive outcomes. Starting from counselling to appliance therapy, ample treatment modalities have been reported in the literature. Many appliances have been developed for habit correction and have been modified depending on the patient compliance. Palatal crib is one such appliance for treating digit sucking habit & tongue thrusting. This case report describes a 12-year-old girl who reported to our department with a history of digit sucking habit which was intervened using modified palatal crib appliance.