Is Early Orthodontic Treatment Necessary?
Orthodontic treatments are common among teens and pre-teens. This is because at this age, permanent teeth have already set in. However, in some situations, early intervention is necessary to save a problem from getting out of hand. The goal of getting early treatment will vary from case to case but the common thing in all of them is that a second treatment has to administered after permanent teeth have set in.
When Should Your Child See an Orthodontist?
Pediatric dentist near you recommend that a child’s first visit to an orthodontist to be no later than at the age of seven. Also, you can schedule for a visit whenever you suspect an orthodontic problem. For the initial check-up, you can expect three possible outcomes. There may be no treatment required, the treatment may be pushed for later in future or immediate treatment may be required to fix the problem. Keep in mind that while orthodontic treatment may be required immediately, the results are not always instant. It is just that some conditions are easily managed when detected and acted upon early.
Conditions Requiring Early Treatment
Our Mississauga Orthodontic clinic provides treatment for the following reasons:
Protruding teeth
This issue is often associated with thumb or finger-sucking habits, but can also be growth related. It tends to affect the upper teeth, making them push out forward, past the bottom teeth. the danger with this kind of structure is that, the upper teeth remain vulnerable to chips, cracks or even being knocked out in the event of an accident. Getting treatment saves a child from having to endure constant dental work to repair damaged teeth.
Cross-bite
This is a condition where all or most of the upper teeth close inside the lower teeth. In a severe case, crossbite interferes with the joint (temporomandibular) connecting the jawbone to the skull. Those affected are likely to experience jaw pain, difficulty chewing, locking of the jaw or ear and facial pain. Crossbite also causes severe wearing of teeth. The treatment administered for it will depend with the cause. If crowding is the cause, a special device is used to expand the jaw line to allow the teeth develop properly.
Open bite
When the sucking reflex persists beyond the age of 4, it can make a child develop an open bite. This is because the pressure of the digit on the front teeth and upper jaw can force the teeth to move apart and the jaw’s shape to change. The result is significantly misaligned teeth that interferes with speech. Thumb sucking and tongue thrusting are also known cause an open bite.
Other conditions that could benefit from orthodontic care include excessive spacing between teeth, abnormal tooth/teeth eruption and overbite and underbite. We have a dentistry for children that will carefully examine your child and then determine if their orthodontic structure is healthy or not. In case treatment is needed you will be appropriately advised to ensure that the problem is completely solved.
Types of Early Orthodontic Intervention
The objective of early treatment is to prevent more serious problems in the future. If an irregularity in a child’s teeth is left to progress, later treatment becomes complex or even the effectiveness diminishes. Depending on each situation, early orthodontic treatment may fall into any of these three categories:
Preventive treatment – The goal of this is to avoid abnormal development of teeth in a an otherwise normal mouth. it may include creating space for an incoming adult tooth or even saving and maintaining space for a tooth lost too early.
Interceptive treatment – This is usually administered in an effort to minimize the complexity of an already existing problem and if possible, stop it completely. Candidates for this treatment often have a mix of both milk teeth and permanent teeth.
Comprehensive treatment – This, as the name suggest is a complete treatment, to entirely correct the situation at hand. The treatment ca begin before the loss of milk teeth, with progressive phases to get you through adulthood. It may include a combination of procedures such as tooth extraction, restorative surgery and jaw surgery.
Orthodontic problems are often as a result of genetic factors, although habits like thumb sucking, poor oral hygiene and poor nutrition could contribute to it. In case of any worries or concern, reach out to out dentistry clinic in Mississauga and we will be glad to assist.