Learn the causes and possible remedies for a receding chin in a baby among other valuable information in this article.
Receding Chin in A Baby
Every newborn baby is unique in their own way. They exhibit some characteristics in resemblance with the parents, while some from the environment. One such element is receding chin in a baby. The other name of the recessed chin is Micrognathia. If we want to learn it in easy words, we can say that it is a condition in which a baby takes birth with a very small jawline. A child may exhibit a recessed chin at any point in life, either at the time of delivery or in the later stages.
More commonly, people who have fetal alcohol syndrome observe this condition. There is nothing to panic about if your child is born with a recessed chin. It may disappear with time. But, if it gets severe, it may lead to various breathing problems. To diagnose it at an early stage, we must know about the symptoms that indicate the condition of a recessed chin.
Symptoms
A child faces the consequences of the recessed chin at the time of breastfeeding. They may show the following notable symptoms:
- Facing problems in extracting milk and latching at the time of breastfeeding
- Inadequate Or poor sleep
- Unwanted weight loss or gain due to an unhealthy diet
- Prolonged breastfeeding sessions
- Breathing difficulties
All of these symptoms are significantly visible to mark the beginning of recessed chin in babies. One should be very cautious about every change in the body or behavior or habits. You should consult a doctor or get it diagnosed from a nearby center. To get it diagnosed, one must be ready for the questions that the doctor will ask to predict the appropriate cause of recessed chin.
Causes of Recessed Chin
Jaws and jawlines are complex structures in the bodies of human beings that contain bone and soft tissues.
- A recessed chin is also called Retrogenia, which can be transferred to a baby if there’s a family history of it.
- There are events when the only cause is the cosmetic factor. This does not affect the speech and eating habits of the baby.
- Another significant cause of recessed Chin or Retrogenia can be Pierre Robin sequence and Treacher Collins syndrome. These are two congenital conditions that develop in babies at the time of infancy. The ultimate consequence of these two syndromes is breathing difficulties in babies.
- Some kids develop it over time due to their habit of over-biting. The only treatment, in this case, is wearing braces so that the kid fails to over-bite.
These are a few causes of a recessed chin. You can help some of them but the only way out is to prevent your child from such conditions. A recessed chin may not cause any harm to the other parts of the body, but it has a lot to do with the eating and breastfeeding habits of the baby.
Feeding The Baby With A Recessed Chin
If your child is born with a recessed chin, it is pretty evident that you cannot help it anytime soon. You may face problems while breastfeeding them, but if you refer to the tip that has been mentioned below, you can overcome all the hurdles and make it go easy.
You can use a vacuum seal for your nipples while breastfeeding. It makes it comparatively more accessible for the baby to latch out milk. Also, you will be able to monitor if they are getting enough milk or not.
Diagnosis Of A Recessed Chin
Personal observation is one of the best methods to diagnose a recessed chin. But to observe a recessed chin, you must know about the correct and incorrect positions of the chin at the time of the baby’s birth.
As per the correct positioning of the human chin, while viewing your face from the front profile, your chin must be on the same vertical plane as the lower lip. If your chin fails to reach the most forward tip of the lower lip, then you have a recessed chin.
To check whether your chin and lower lip lie on the same plane, you can use your palm. Put your palm sidewards on your lower lip and try to make it at a 90-degree angle with your face. If you see that both your lower lip and chin touch your palm, then you may not have a recessed chin. But if you see that your chin fails to reach your palm, then you have a recessed chin.
There is nothing to panic about a recessed chin. It may or may not recover over time, but the effects eventually reduce. If you find that your child is not overcoming the problem of a recessed chin, then you can follow a few remedies.
Home Remedies To Cure A Recessed Chin
The best home remedy to cure a recessed chin is to follow a few exercises. The most prominent exercise to help with a recessed chin is stretching the neck and chin area. There is another exercise where you need to tilt your head back to look up at the ceiling. Afterward, you need to lower your jow and push it forward so that your skin feels a stretch. Hold position on the count of 10 and relax later. These exercises are effective in treating a recessed chin organically. However, you can move on to specific surgical methods that people follow to get rid of it soon.
Do Babies Ever Get Rid Of A Recessed Chin?
Yes, after following the above exercises and other healthy habits, a child can get rid of a recessed chin. All you need to make sure that they don’t overburden themselves. If you still don’t find any solution to your baby’s problem of having a recessed chin, you can proceed with the surgical method. You do not need to worry as these are the best and safest surgeries in the field of medical science.
1. Implant
Chin augmentation or chin implant is recommendable for a recessed chin that arises due to retrogenia. The surgery has been proven to be successful for mild to moderate cases of receding chin.
2. Sliding Genioplasty
It is always a better option for all those with a severe case of receding chin. In this method, a doctor makes an incision on both sides of the chin so that they can access the bone of the lower jaw. In this way, the experts can reposition the bones to solve the problem of receding chin. This method requires anesthesia and the risk of nerve damage and infection is more than an implant. Consequently, you can also develop a fever or excessive bleeding while you are on your recovery period.
These are the two surgical methods available for the treatment of a receding chin in a baby.
The Bottom Line
This is everything that you need to know about the receding chin. If you have any problems related to the information, you can let us know in the comment section below.
