In this solo clinical presentation, Dr. William M. Hang recounts his ten‑year experience using Biobloc/Orthotropics to treat a Class II Division I malocclusion. He describes a specific patient case where, contrary to conventional orthodontic advice, he advanced the upper dentition by 8–10 mm and encouraged mandibular forward growth. Lateral head X‑rays show a dramatic increase in airway space, which he links to the physics of airflow—resistance varies with the fourth power of the airway radius—implying that even modest dimensional changes can vastly improve breathing. He highlights functional benefits such as easier breathing, better athletic performance, and reduced headaches, while acknowledging he cannot guarantee identical results for every patient. The talk blends personal anecdote, clinical observation, and physiological explanation to advocate for Biobloc as a non‑extraction, airway‑focused orthodontic approach.
Chapters
So I was doing BioBlock Orthotropics for exactly 10 years when one evening I was sitting in my office, which basically I do all the time anyway since Deb and I don't have a life and I'm so much into this. Back in the year 2000, I was looking at lateral head x-rays. And I noticed this patient here went from here to here, and that kind of an airway. Now, what I know today about this is that is an unbelievable change. And this is a girl who— this is a girl who was in this town with a Class II Division I malocclusion. See the overjet? The huge overjet and deep overbite. She'd been seeing an orthodontist, more than one, who said, You need to have 4 teeth taken out and you need to have a headgear. And she came to see me and I said, no, you don't need to have any teeth taken out, and no, we don't need to shove your upper teeth back. As a matter of fact, we need to move them forward about 8 to 10 millimeters. So this girl with a Class II occlusion over here, we need to push your teeth out another 8 to 10 millimeters. You have to have a little faith. And as I do that, even now after doing it 22 years, do you think I I still take a deep breath, and I'm going to show you some cases that are really tough. I still take a deep breath. But the point is, if we do that and then we're able to get the mandible to come forward, and you get this out here, and the face looks like this, and the airway looks like this— wow, that's something else. And then when you understand that the resistance to the flow of a gas in a tube And this is a tube, varies inversely according to the 4th power of the radius. Any little small change in the diameter or radius of this tube has a huge effect on this person's ability to breathe and their ability to do sports, their ability to go more than 5 steps and not have a headache. This is the difference between someone who's gonna have problems down the road and someone who's gonna live a healthy life. Now, can I guarantee that everyone's gonna have An airway like this? Don't I wish. I guarantee, like the Eagle Scout that I am, that I'm going to do my best. That's all I guarantee. But when I saw this, it changed my life, and I realized just how big a deal this was.
