Mandibular lateral motion inhibitor

A weight control appliance mountable onto teeth within an oral cavity for slowing down the rate of food consumption, said appliance comprising, in combination:

• a frame member having opposed arms;
• first and second wing members disposed on respective opposed arms of said frame member, each of said wing members having first and second oppositely positioned relatively flat faces, the respective major axes of which extend longitudinally along the corresponding arm and the respective minor axes of which extend vertically with respect to the corresponding arm, said first flat face for being disposed in facing relationship with selected teeth and adjacent thereto and said second flat face for being disposed in facing relationship with the user's tongue;
• a plurality of projection members extending laterally outward from said frame member for engaging the biting surfaces of selected teeth to stabilize the device within the oral cavity;
• each of said second flat faces having a slot formed therein and a pair of openings positioned at opposite ends of said slot, said openings communicating between said first and second flat faces for receiving respective ends of a wire for securing the appliance within the user's oral cavity by wrapping the ends of the wire around a particular one of the user's teeth and securing the ends thereof together on the cheek side of the tooth;
• and,
• said first and second wing members being configured to extend vertically between the user's top and bottom teeth to inhibit lateral movement of the lower jaw with respect to the upper jaw during mastication.

An appliance for inhibiting lateral movement of a lower jaw with respect to an upper jaw in an oral cavity, said appliance comprising, in combination:

• a frame member;
• a wing member mounted on said frame member, said wing member having first and second oppositely positioned faces, said first face being disposed for facing relatonship with selected teeth within the oral cavity, and said second face being disposed for facing relationship with a person's tongue within the oral cavity;
• said wing member having first and second openings communicating between the first and second faces for receiving opposite ends of a wire to enable the appliance to be secured in a predetermined position within the oral cavity by wrapping the ends of the wire around a selected tooth;
• and,
• means for mounting said frame member onto a selected lower tooth or upper tooth with the appliance being held within the oral cavity in a predetermined position between the selected tooth and tongue, said wing member being vertically disposed between a first facing position adjacent a bottom tooth and a second facing position adjacent a top tooth, whereby lateral movement of the lower jaw is opposed by engagement of one of the upper or lower teeth against said wing member when the appliance is so mounted within the oral cavity.