Lower Lingual Holding Arch
The lower lingual holding arch is designed to maintain the position of the lower molars as the baby teeth are lost. The permanent teeth that will replace these baby teeth are much smaller. By preventing the molars from moving forward, we can gain up to 5 mm of space to relieve crowding of the lower teeth. If this space gain is not utilized, it can often mean that permanent teeth must be extracted in order to alleviate the crowding of the lower teeth. The lower lingual holding arch is worn until all the permanent teeth have erupted.
