Building a Team Around Your Child's Airway: Who's Involved and Why It Matters

Airway problems in children rarely have a single cause or a single fix. A child who mouth-breathes, snores, or shows signs of sleep-disordered breathing may need input from several different specialists working together — and understanding who does what can help you navigate the process without feeling lost.

The typical airway care team:

• Pediatric dentist (Dr. Paulsen): monitors oral health, tongue-tie, and early signs of airway-related dental development during routine visits, often the first to flag a concern
• Orthodontist (Dr. Zitterkopf): evaluates jaw and palate structure, provides expansion or growth-guidance treatment when the bones are still developing
• ENT: examines and treats tonsils, adenoids, nasal obstructions, and structural airway issues that orthodontics can’t reach
• Myofunctional therapist: retrains tongue posture, swallowing patterns, and breathing habits so structural improvements hold long-term
• Speech-language pathologist: addresses articulation and oral motor patterns tied to tongue posture, sometimes overlapping with myofunctional therapy
• Sleep medicine physician: diagnoses sleep-disordered breathing through sleep studies and manages medical treatment when needed
• Pediatrician: the hub who often first hears about behavioral or growth concerns and can help coordinate specialist referrals

Not every child needs every specialist. A child with mild mouth breathing and a narrow palate might just need orthodontic expansion. A child with snoring, large tonsils, and speech delays might need three or four of the above working in sequence. The value of a coordinated team is that each specialist is working from the same picture instead of treating their piece in isolation.

At Life Orthodontics & Pediatric Dentistry, Dr. Zitterkopf and Dr. Paulsen work together under one roof — orthodontics and pediatric dentistry — and maintain referral relationships with ENTs, myofunctional therapists, SLPs, and sleep physicians throughout the Colorado Springs area. When we see something that’s outside our lane, we say so and make the introduction.

If you’re not sure who your child needs to see first, start with us. We’ll help you map out the right team based on what we find at the exam.