Correcting Your Child’s Teeth

Correcting Your Child’s Teeth

Your child’s oral health can be a source of significant stress, especially when you are not sure if they are old enough to receive treatment or not.  When it comes to your child’s teeth, some orthodontic issues may come earlier than others; and yes, correction can occur with their baby teeth. What are they, and when are you able to fix them? Here are some questions that you may want your orthodontist to address:

  • Is there a problem at all?
  • What is the problem?
  • How will it be treated? I.e. duration, teeth removal, & cost
  • If it is not serious, can the treatment wait for the adult teeth?

Unfortunately, orthodontic problems do arise in smaller children. These usually crop up after 12 years of age, when their adult teeth come in. Therefore, it is often expected for you to wait until there are more solid teeth to work with. It can also offer a clearer view of what your child’s mouth will look like.

Which Orthodontic Problems Are Significant?

With the baby teeth, some problems may arise that need tending to. Here are a few that you may want to consider asking a dentist about:

  • Abnormal Eruption- when teeth come through the gums in the wrong place.
  • Crowding – Lack of space for teeth
  • Under/Overbite – These may affect the jaw.
  • Crossbite- This occurs when upper teeth come down on the wrong side of lower teeth.

If these are not apparent when examining your child, you may look for more obvious signs like:

  • Chewing or biting with difficulty
  • Baby teeth loss at odd times (Before 5-years-old, or after 13)
  • Jaw-shifting when eating
  • Problems with talking
  • Obvious teeth abnormalities such as protrusion

Can You Forgo Treatment?

From before, it may be wise to leave treatment until after their adult teeth come in. This can be a difficult choice considering the problems may arise when the child is five or younger, and the adult teeth may not arrive for years. Your dentist can provide a better answer to your concerns but left alone, some of the problems will only become worse. With orthodontic problems such as crowding or any biting issues, the child may unintentionally cause damage to their gums or jaw.

It is your choice to seek further knowledge about these issues should they come up. Remember, when your child is having trouble with eating or breathing because of teeth issues, it may be time to seek orthodontic help. If you ask the correct questions, your dentist can provide you with the right solutions. When it comes to your family, it may be better to address these problems sooner than later.

For more information about orthodontic care, for a consultation, or to answer any questions you may have, contact an orthodontist, like an orthodontist in San Clemente, CA, today.

Thank you to the experts at San Clemente Orthodontics for their input into orthodontic care.