When Should Orthodontic Treatment Start?
Minh Nguyen
A child should have his/her teeth checked at about age seven, when the
permanent teeth start to grow. Although adolescents (11 to 15 years of
age) are most responsive to orthodontics treatment, this early
examination will alert the Houston dentists to any potential problems.
Orthodontics treatment is also suitable for adults and about 25% of
patients today are adults.
In general, treatment with braces in Houston will take approximately
one to three years depending on a few factors such as the growth of the
patient's face and mouth, co-operation of the patient and the severity
of the problems.
For children, the best time to start depends on the type of
malocclusion. Sometimes treatment is done in 2 phases in Houston:
Phase 1
If the child's jaws are not aligned right or too small, the Houston
orthodontist may start braces treatment while the jaws are growing.
This is called growth modification and is usually carried out between
ages to 12 and takes about 1 year. Subsequently, the Houston
orthodontist will review the child 6-monthly or yearly to monitor the
development of the permanent teeth.
Often bite problems may be intercepted during a child's early years
from age 4 to 10. Cross-bites, severe crowding and severe protrusions
are the most common bite problems that are seen in Early Phase
Treatment. The focus of this type of braces treatment is usually
limited to a specific area such as correcting the cross-bite or
protrusion. Treatment length is usually a year or less followed by a
rest phase while the remaining baby teeth are lost and the permanent
teeth come in. In the majority of Early Phase Treatment there is a
second phase of braces treatment with conventional braces on the upper
and lower to complete the balance of the correction on the newly
erupted permanent teeth.
Phase 2
If the child's adult or permanent teeth are not properly aligned when
they erupt (usually between ages 11 to 13), they will need to be
straightened and this is called Phase 2. Most children who have
undergone Phase 1 braces treatment also need Phase 2.
Often bite problems may be intercepted during a child's early years
from age 4 to 10. Cross-bites, severe crowding and severe protrusions
are the most common bite problems that are seen in Early Phase
Treatment. The focus of this type of braces treatment is usually
limited to a specific area such as correcting the cross-bite or
protrusion. Treatment length is usually a year or less followed by a
rest phase while the remaining baby teeth are lost and the permanent
teeth come in. In the majority of Early Phase Treatment there is a
second phase of braces treatment with conventional braces on the upper
and lower to complete the balance of the correction on the newly
erupted permanent teeth.
Just as the typical Houston braces treatment length of two years is
divided with Early Phase Treatment and Second Phase Treatment, so is
the braces treatment fee in Houston. Adding the fees of both phases
together, generally does not exceed the fee of comprehensive braces
treatment in Houston.
For more information, click the following link:
http://www.softdental.com/about_services.html
SoftDental (website: http://www.softdental.com ) is Houston's Premier
Laser, Family, and Cosmetic dentistry. Dr. Minh Nguyen is one of the
America's Top Dentists.
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