Early orthodontic treatment in kids has many benefits
Straight teeth and well positioned jaws will give your child a nicer smile, boost of confidence and better oral health. Treatment from a young age helps in developing their airways, improves facial symmetry and promotes healthy jaw joint function. This allows your child to have better sleep, better growth and improved overall health.
We recommend that you bring your child in for assessment by the age of seven-years-old. This is a good age to start early orthodontics as teeth and gums are usually very responsive to treatment. Early treatment may prevent or reduce problems from developing and make treatment later on shorter and less complicated. It can also reduce the need for extraction of healthy permanent teeth due to lack of space or crowding.
In a child, there should be spaces between all their teeth to allow room for bigger adult teeth later on. All their upper and lower teeth should meet together nicely when they bite together. It is normal for their upper teeth to sit slightly in front of the lower teeth. If your child’s teeth deviate from any of these norms, early orthodontic treatment may be required. Common signs to also check for are asymmetry, protruding teeth, underbite, overbite, crooked teeth, or prolonged habits such as mouth breathing and thumb sucking. Our dentists at Northcote Dental will be able to identify if there are any issues with your child’s jaw and teeth alignment.
Treatment this early is fairly rare, but can be carried out if there are major identifiable bite problems (for example an underbite or cross bite). In many infants, these problems are caused by undesirable habits such as thumb sucking or mouth breathing. At Northcote Dental, we offer treatment options that help to eliminate these habits.
Orthodontic treatment can be performed for young children who have both deciduous (baby) teeth and permanent (adult) teeth. Early treatment aims to identify and correct issues with improper growth and development before they start to have a permanent effect on the teeth and face. Our goal with starting early is to maintain or provide space for permanent teeth so they can grow straight, and position the upper and lower jaws so they match together well and give a well-balanced face. Early intervention helps us to reduce the need for braces or jaw surgery in the future.