At Acorn Dentistry For Kids we focus on prevention using interceptive orthodontics, to help your child enjoy and grow into their great smile for life. As part of our prevention plan, we evaluate your child’s bite for signs of malocclusion at every appointment.
Malocclusion is simply the abnormal alignment of teeth, which can affect the way your child chews smiles and even how well he can brush and floss his teeth.
Traditional braces are not implemented until all of your child’s adult teeth are in, around the age of 12. Interceptive Orthodontics is used between ages 4 to 11, and takes advantage of their ongoing growth and development to encourage better jaw development and tooth placement.
Why Choose Early Interceptive Orthodontics?
Our dental team often encourages Interceptive Orthodontics to prevent more serious problems from developing later on that will be more difficult and complicated to treat. Not only is it a preventative therapy, it can also completely reduce your child’s need for full Phase 2 braces, or minimize the treatment time if they are still needed.
Early intervention orthodontics….
- Lowers the risk of tooth injury to protruding teeth
- Enhances your child’s appearance
- Gently guides the jaw growth for better facial symmetry
- Encourages teeth into ideal position
- Creates room for erupting teeth
- Maintains space for adult teeth
- Reduces the risk of tooth extraction
- Optimizes proper bite and jaw development
We offer a wide range of Interceptive Orthodontic treatments. Should your child need traditional braces, we’ve partnered with a local orthodontist for further treatment.
Maintaining Space
Sometimes a baby tooth is lost prematurely, before it’s time for the adult tooth to come in. Without that tooth, adjacent teeth can gradually close the gap, creating an area that’s too crowded. To maintain that space for the adult tooth that will eventually appear, all of our offices use interceptive space maintainers.
A stainless steel band is placed around a neighboring tooth to anchor a small wire loop that spans the gap and touches the adjacent tooth. This customized orthodontic device prevents the teeth from drifting and maintains the needed, uncrowded space for your child’s adult tooth to erupt.
Expanders
Some patients have narrow upper arches that can cause future dental complications if left untreated. With a customized orthodontic expander from Acorn Dentistry For Kids, we can widen the palate, creating more space for your child’s teeth to grow. A narrow jaw can also impact your child’s ability to draw breath through their nose, encouraging mouth-breathing, dry mouth and even bad breath.
Cross Bite Correction
An ideal bite is one where the upper teeth close in front of the lower teeth. Children who have a cross bite – or an underbite – have the opposite placement. When the lower teeth close over the upper teeth, it can cause:
- Asymmetrical facial appearance
- Higher risk of trauma to the teeth
- Long-term abnormal wear of the teeth
- Headaches
- Muscle strain
- Increased risk of cavities
- Higher chance of gum disease
Your child’s Interceptive Orthodontic treatment includes crossbite correction, to guide their teeth and jaw into the ideal placement.
If you’re worried about your child’s developing smile, call the office to schedule your same-day consultation!
If a lip tie or tongue tie is creating problems, Acorn Dentistry for Kids’ state-of-the-art laser treatment can treat it quickly and easily.
