ByBy taking your child to a family orthodontist for teeth correction or jaw alignment issues, you ensure they get high-quality braces or Invisalign. Family orthodontics treatment can help prevent your child’s teeth from becoming imbalanced. If your toddler experiences mouth breathing, it may signify crowded teeth or jaw mispositioning, which an orthodontist can correct. Here are other things that may indicate the need to take your child to a practitioner for orthodontic treatment:
Bite Problems
Improperly positioned teeth increase the risks of teeth alignment issues, such as overbites, open bites, underbites, and crossbites. Early intervention by a family orthodontics practitioner can help protect your kid’s upper and lower teeth from rapid wear. Corrected bite problems also minimize the excessive force exerted on the jaw during chewing. This helps prevent other issues, such as headaches. An orthodontist can refer your child to an oral surgeon for correction of open bite issues or tailor metal braces to improve their teeth’ positioning.
Tongue Thrust
Tongue thrust happens when a toddler uses their tongue to push the arch of the teeth when sleeping or swallowing. This causes the teeth to gradually move out of position, resulting in misalignment. An orthodontist uses braces to hold your toddler’s teeth and prevent the dental arch from misaligning due to this problem. Toddlers who suck their thumbs may experience teeth and jaw alignment issues as well, as the thumb presses against the upper front teeth. This can cause the teeth to protrude forward with time, necessitating the intervention of a family orthodontist.
Jaw Shifting
Wrong positioning of the upper and lower jaws interferes with how teeth fit in the mouth. It also affects functions such as biting, chewing, or speaking. Early alignment of your toddler’s jaws can help protect them from the risks of Temporal Mandibular Joint (TMJ) disorder. Prevention of this issue protects your toddler from jaw discomfort, pain, injuries, and rapid decay. A family orthodontist may apply oral appliances like invisible aligners and braces to correct jaws with minor misalignments.
Trapped Teeth
An impacted or trapped tooth happens when your toddler’s tooth fails to develop properly past the jawbone or gums. This problem may include full bony, partial bony, or soft tissue impaction, which can cause gum swelling and pain. Tooth crowding may limit the space on the gums needed for the tooth to grow properly. Early or late loss of baby teeth may interfere with your child’s permanent teeth and cause this problem. If your kid’s teeth are impacted, a family orthodontist can use customized metal braces or palate expanders to correct their positioning. This can help correct other issues like crowding and give the gums enough space for the teeth to grow fully.
Visit a Family Orthodontics Practitioner
Family orthodontics treatment can help improve the positioning or alignment of your child’s teeth. The treatment also corrects jaw issues, such as shifting, which causes the face to become uneven. An orthodontist carries out examinations using imaging tests to help determine the actual problem and correctly tailor Invisalign, expanders, and braces. Request a free consultation with this practitioner if your child has gapped, trapped, or protruded teeth.
