Siblings with spaced arches treated with and without partial glossectomy

Macroglossia, or enlarged tongue, is thought to be an etiological factor in open bite, bimaxillary protrusion, and dental arch spacing, and it might cause instability after orthodontic treatment. Partial glossectomy to reduce tongue size might be a useful method of solving these problems. In this report, we describe orthodontic treatment of 2 siblings with enlarged tongues and arch-space problems. The sister, whose tongue was larger and spacing problem more severe, was treated with a partial glossectomy; her brother refused surgery and was treated with a tongue-crib appliance. Stability after orthodontic treatment was evaluated.