Early Treatment
Brace Options | Early Treatment | Two-Phase Treatment | Surgical Orthodontics | Invisalign®
Both the Canadian and the American Association of Orthodontists recommend that children be seen by a certified orthodontist at the age of seven. Most children do not require any treatment at this stage, but some will benefit from it. If your child has a problem that requires attention, your orthodontist may recommend early treatment or Phase I treatment. This type of treatment, which takes advantage of facial growth and tooth eruption, can lessen the severity of a problem, and it frequently makes the completion of treatment at a later age less time consuming and less expensive.
Early treatment may be beneficial in:
- Eliminating adverse habits such as thumb or finger sucking, tongue thrusting and lip habits
- Correcting cross bite, tooth grinding, tooth interference and lower jaw displacement
- Avoiding fracture or loss of protruding teeth
- Assuring that the jaws and teeth meet properly during chewing and swallowing
- Correcting early malalignment of teeth and jaws
- Enhancing proper speech development
- Evaluating breathing problems that may adversely affect normal growth and jaw shape
- Coordinating treatment decisions with the family dentist and allowing for proper eruption of permanent teeth
- Improving self-image