Did you know that we can offer orthodontic care for kids too? In fact, we can begin treatment as soon as age seven, helping guide the growth of the smile! In today’s blog, your Fort Worth, TX, orthodontist talks about how we take a phased approach to children’s care with interceptive orthodontics.
Starting Care Young
At age seven, your children have a mix of primary teeth and permanent ones, so we can better assess the risk of misalignment and identify any complications with the growth and development of the jaw or oral structures. For children this young, we will take a phased approach. The first phase of treatment will use certain interceptive orthodontics to limit misalignment and even help guide the growth of the smile to limit the severity of poor alignment as they approach the teen years and complete their treatment with the second phase.
The First Phase of Treatment
For the first phase of treatment, we could use a custom-made retainer to help guide the growth of the smile and prevent misalignment from growing worse. This could be fixed or removable. We could also suggest a space maintainer, or teeth spacer. This is a fixed or removable device that is worn to help keep the spaces in the mouth open when a baby tooth is lost prematurely to decay or injury. This helps guide the permanent teeth into place properly to prevent major misalignment from developing. We take a custom approach to ensure our appliances will comfortably and provide treatment with precision and accuracy.
Continuing Care in the Teen Years
Once all of the permanent teeth have completely erupted, and the enamel on the teeth has calcified as well, we can begin the second and last phase of treatment. This is actually done in the teen years. For some kids, we could use braces, and employ tooth-colored ceramic brackets to make them less noticeable when worn. This is great for more advanced cases of misalignment. For more minor cases, we could discuss the Invisalign® system, which instead of braces will use a series of aligners made from a clear plastic material. This is much less visible and they can be removed before meals or before your child brushes and flosses his or her teeth, making daily care much simpler.
If you have any questions, then give us a call today.
Do You Have Questions About Children’s Orthodontics?
Our team wants to help your entire family enjoy straighter and healthier smiles. If you have any questions about treating poor alignment in the early years, or if you would like to schedule an appointment soon, please call Lake Country Orthodontics in Fort Worth, TX at (817) 236-7846. Our office proudly serves patients who live in Azle, Saginaw, and all surrounding communities.
