Wondering when your child should start orthodontic treatment? Our orthodontists at SmileTown Orthodontics Braces & Invisalign provide insight on when it should happen.
Every child's smile is unique and beautiful - especially your child's! You may wonder when they should begin orthodontic treatment so they can achieve the best outcome.
The answer to this question will be determined by the severity of the misalignment of their jaw or bite. In the past, we'd normally delay providing orthodontic treatment until a child had reached their teen years - between the ages of 12 and 14. The logic behind this was to allow time for their permanent teeth to erupt. But this approach commonly resulted in the extraction of permanent teeth to allow room for tooth movement.
We take a different approach to orthodontic treatment today. With interceptive orthodontics, we can start treating children as young as 7 to 11 years old. The benefit of early treatment is that we can correct problems before they fully develop and retain more of the adult teeth that would have had to be extracted later.
Interceptive orthodontics allows us to use orthodontic appliances (not braces in every case) while your child still has their baby teeth. Once the adult teeth emerge, your child starts a second phase of orthodontic treatment. Typically, during this time they would wear braces.
Our orthodontists at SmileTown Orthodontics Braces & Invisalign can assess your child's teeth and oral health to determine whether they are a candidate for treatment. If we can address your child's alignment issues with orthodontic intervention, our team will explain how treatment could have a positive outcome for your child's smile. We will discuss any and all treatment options with you, and develop a custom treatment plan.