Early treatment

Addressing your child’s orthodontic problems at an early age may reduce the severity of future treatment during adolescence…

There are many important reasons to get your child assessed early if you are concerned about the alignment of their teeth. However, often it is not just the teeth that are out of position, but the size and position of the jaw bones. When a child is still growing we can redirect their growth with appliances to correct underbites, overbite/overjet problems, crossbites and narrow jaws. We usually call this type of orthodontic treatment “Early“, or “Phase One” orthodontic treatment. These appliances can be used at an early age, and in conjunction with braces or clear aligner treatment (such as Invisalign) when all of the adult teeth have erupted.

The most common reasons for initiating Early orthodontic treatment include:

Protruding Top Teeth

When the upper teeth extend significantly beyond the lower teeth, they are at a higher risk of being damaged, injured, or knocked out due to an accident. This risk escalates if the lips cannot comfortably close around the front upper teeth.

Narrow Palate

In cases where the palate (upper arch) is significantly narrow, some children might benefit from a top jaw expander to create more space before the palate has fully fused.

Thumb sucking

Thumb sucking and tongue thrusting are some of the most common mouth habits in young children, and can cause open bites, speech anomalies, narrow palates, cross bites, crowding of lower teeth and protrusion and spacing of upper front teeth.  Early treatment of these habits can help prevent a malocclusion getting worse and make definitive treatment easier.

If a crossbite at the front of the mouth remains untreated, it can lead to uneven wear on teeth over time and may also contribute to gum issues.

Impacted Teeth

An impacted tooth can lead to gum issues, decay, or pressure resorption of surrounding teeth. Assessing if there is a need to address this early with orthodontic treatment can help avoid, or reduce the need for complicated orthodontic treatment later.

It is always best to consult an orthodontist early, as addressing these issues early often reduces the severity of future orthodontic treatment in the future. In certain cases, early intervention can avoid the need for further orthodontic treatment in the future! Sometimes a simple removable clear plate can be sufficient to correct minor orthodontic issues in a growing child.

At MyOrthodontist our philosophy is firstly to see if early treatment will show a lasting benefit. We strongly disagree with treating unnecessarily, so we will not prescribe early treatment if there is no clinical benefit in doing so.