When to start thinking about Orthodontics

While most orthodontic treatment is done during the early teen years, both the Canadian and American Association of Orthodontist’s recommend that children be seen for their first orthodontic examination by the age of 7.

We strongly recommend that your child is seen for an examination by this age, as much more severe problems can occur if not addressed during your child’s pre-adolescent development. If a child is examined and found not to have any immediate treatment needs then recall exams to monitor the development of the teeth and jaws can be scheduled.

The preventative and interceptive benefits of early orthodontic treatment for your child may include the following:

• Reduce or eliminate the need to extract teeth
• Reduce or eliminate the need for jaw surgery
• Lower the risk of injury to protruded front teeth
• Correct harmful oral habits
• Improve their smile/self confidence
• Improve speech development
• Influence growth of the jaws in a positive manner
• Reduce appearance-consciousness during critical developmental years
• Improve the width of the dental arches
• Simplify and shorten treatment time for full braces
• Increase the stability of final treatment results
• Reduce the likelihood of impacted permanent teeth
• Guide permanent teeth into more favorable positions
• Preserve or gain space for erupting permanent teeth
• Correct potentially damaging bite problems

As we all know, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. While early treatment may not be able to eliminate the need for full braces in the future, it certainly can help ensure the best outcome possible. Contact us today if you have any other questions or if you are ready to start the journey to a beautiful new smile!