What You Need to Know About Orthodontics

Today on “ Tip Tuesday”, Heroes Dental founder, Dr. Sergio Guzman, gives us a little insight on the importance of orthodontics.

To start let’s put it all into perspective. While a crooked smile isn’t the end of the world, it can affect your child’s confidence (or even the confidence of an adult). More importantly, it can affect an individual’s overall oral health by putting them at risk of developing a number of dental diseases.

Your McAllen orthodontists at Heroes Dental know the importance of a properly aligned smile, and we take pride in helping shape beautiful smiles for adults and children all around the Rio Grande Valley.

We’d also love to share with you a bit of information about orthodontics.

What is Orthodontics?

Orthodontics is a specialty of dentistry that focuses on the diagnosis, prevention, and correction of crooked teeth and less-than-perfect smiles. While many may be familiar with the term, few know that it comes in two variants.

1. Orthodontics
2. Dentofacial Orthopedics

To explain, the practice of orthodontics focuses more on your teeth’s movement in order to create a straight and healthy smile. Dentofacial orthopedics, on the other hand, focuses more on correcting imbalances in the jaw and surrounding bone structure, most of which happens during childhood.

As Dr. Guzman says, at Heroes Dental, “We know everyone’s smiles are different, this is why our trained orthodontists will evaluate you to give you that perfect smile that makes a great first impression.”

Why Do We Need Orthodontics?

There are plenty of reasons why you would want to treat your smile by visiting a Heroes Dental orthodontist. One of the big reasons for treating crowded, protrusive, unaligned, or spaced out teeth is because crooked or unaligned teeth can have a big effect on your self-esteem and confidence levels.

But as we stated above, emotional health isn’t the only thing at risk because of crooked or unaligned teeth. There are a number of dental issues that can arise if unaligned teeth are left untreated, such as:

Malocclusions that can affect chewing and speaking.

Worn down enamel.

Weak gum tissues and surrounding bone.

Tooth decay and other gum diseases as crooked teeth can become hard to clean.

If you or your child’s teeth are unaligned or crooked, extra vigilance must be taken when brushing and flossing to make sure your smile is as clean as possible.

What Types of Treatments Are Included in Orthodontics?

Most people are familiar with orthodontic treatment plans like:

Braces

Aligners (e.g. Invisalign)

Removable Retainers

However, more obscure treatments exist such as:

Special Fixed Appliances – Used to control tongue thrusting and thumb sucking.

Fixed Space Maintainers – Used if a baby tooth is lost early, leaving a space in between teeth that needs to be stabilized to ensure the permanent tooth grows out straight.

Removable Space Maintainers – Used for the same purpose as fixed space maintainers, only removable.

Jaw Repositioning Appliances – Used to help the jaw close in a more comfortable, properly aligned position.

Palatal Expander – Used to improve the arch of the hard palate.

To learn more about these options, seek the consultation of an experienced Heroes Dental orthodontist today.

How to Tell If You Should See an Orthodontist

If you suspect that your teeth or jaw need some form of alignment, consulting with your dentist or orthodontist should be the first step you should take. Your dentist will perform an evaluation to see if you can benefit from orthodontics.

During this evaluation, the dentist or orthodontist will:

1. Review your medical records.
2. Review your dental health history.
3. Create plaster molds of your teeth.
4. Take X-rays or photos of your teeth and jaw.

After that, depending on the results, your orthodontist will come up with the perfect plan to treat:

Overbites – When the teeth on top extend further than the teeth on the bottom of your jaw.

Underbites – When the teeth on the bottom of your jaw extend beyond your top teeth.

Open Bites – When space between the front and/or side teeth form after the back teeth bite down.

Crossbites – Happens when the top teeth are misaligned from the bottom teeth when biting down.

Crowding – Having too many teeth that affects the dental bridge.

Spacing – When spaces or gaps form in between teeth.

Misplaced Midline – Happens when the middle of your top teeth does not align with the middle of your bottom teeth.

Rest assured, if you suspect that any of the above complications are affecting the way you eat or talk, our trained orthodontists are more than capable of correcting these issues.

Do you or your children suffer from misaligned teeth? Heroes Dental is here to save the day.

Heroes Dental has years of extensive experience perfecting smiles, and as your orthodontists in the Rio Grande Valley, we take pride in that.

If you have any concerns regarding your or your child’s smile, schedule a visit with one of our orthodontists by contacting us at any of our RGV locations today.