Why Should a Child Visit an Orthodontist?

Why Should a Child Visit an Orthodontist? Parents are often amazed when the pediatric dentist recommends that they should visit an orthodontist at around seven years of age since a child probably hasn’t even lost half of the baby teeth. Why are you going to try and straighten up baby teeth? Most orthodontists recommend early therapy only when needed. The result of this recommendation has two phases of orthodontic treatment.

Phase 1 Treatment

The orthodontist does not strive for perfectly straight teeth when children are treated at such a young age. Much of the teeth will only drop out after all. Most treatments in phase I do not include braces. It’s time to make the jaws ready for adult teeth instead with expansion devices and other options.

Mixed teeth is a fancy way of saying one person simultaneously has both baby and adult teeth. Moreover, overcrowding, cross-bites, overbites, and under-bite problems can be easily fixed during this period. The expansion and repair of the jaws can usually prevent removals or operations if the patient is young rather than later.

Phase 2 Treatment

Phase II commences typically when the majority of adult teeth are present, and the 12-year molars of the child are nearing the surface. A whole mouth of braces can be used for the alignment of the teeth and the perfect smile. This treatment stage can begin as early as 11 years of age and can be done for both teenagers and adults. In several months, some mild cases with Invisalign may be corrected, but most Phase II treatments last 18-24 months.

Problems requiring orthodontic attention can become apparent long before a child has permanent teeth. Our experienced orthodontists at Orthodontic Arts can recommend two-phase treatment depending on the type of problem a child has. This means that the treatment is conducted twice, often for predictable phases of dental growth and physical development. Six things here are needed for parents to know about orthodontic treatment in these two phases.

1. This type of treatment has been designed to help the child’s jaw develop to ensure that permanent teeth, particularly canine teeth, have sufficient space.
2. Double phase therapy is intended for children, but this is not the answer for all children. Even with exceptions, many orthodontic problems require only one phase of complete orthodontics.
3. Straightening baby teeth isn’t necessarily the goal. It is possible that baby teeth will be moved during Phase 1 of orthodontic treatment. This helps create plenty of room as permanent grow.
4. Phase One of a two-phase treatment plan may happen while the child still has some baby teeth. During Phase 1 it is possible to use a fixed device such as braces and some removable devices, but this type of device is different for children. Sometimes the baby teeth may require premature removal so that the permanent teeth can be properly aligned.

You can be sure that you have an exceptional orthodontist when choosing our orthodontic treatment. Just as the physicians study their specialties after their general medical training, after completing their general dental training, the orthodontists study their specialty, orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics. The members of Orthodontic Arts like Dr. Wilson are some of the most qualified and experienced orthodontists in OKC. Come to us and get accurate diagnosis and treatment for your children’s teeth.

**Disclaimer: The above post is not intended to be medical advice or create a relationship between doctor and patient.