Indications for Orthodontic Treatment

Crowding

Teeth are poorly aligned, misplaced or blocked out due to a small dental arch or large teeth. Proper oral hygiene can be difficult and esthetics is often a concern.

Spacing

Spaces between the teeth can be caused by small or missing teeth or a dental arch that is too wide. Esthetics is usually the main concern.

Crossbite

Upper teeth bite inside lower teeth (toward the tongue). Can occur in the front or back of the mouth and is best treated early in order to prevent worsening of possible associated skeletal or bone/gum problems.

Deep overbite
Upper front teeth overlap too much over lower front teeth. When the lower front teeth bite into the palate or gum tissue behind the upper front teeth, significant bone damage and discomfort can occur.

Open bite

Front teeth do not touch when biting down on back teeth. May result from a finger sucking habit, tongue thrusting habit or constant mouth breathing and is more difficult to correct after growth has ceased.

Protrusion

Front teeth stick out beyond normal contact with lower front teeth. Protruded front teeth are an esthetic concern, are prone to injury, often indicate a poor bite of the back teeth and may indicate unevenness in jaw growth.

Thumb-/finger-sucking habit

Can cause protrusion of upper front teeth, crowding of lower front teeth, open bite in the front and/or crossbite it the back.

Underbite

Misalignment of the jaws where the lower jaw is long relative to the upper jaw or the upper jaw is short relative to the lower jaw. The result is crossbite of the front teeth, misalignment of the bite in the back and diminished esthetics.

Impacted tooth
Should have come in, but has not due to crowding or other blockage. Early intervention is recommended in order to improve chances of aligning impacted tooth.

Improper bite
Front and/or back teeth do not fit together properly when biting down. May lead to difficulty in chewing or biting, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) problems, increased wear of teeth and/or decreased esthetics.

Early loss of baby teeth
Can lead to loss of space necessary for permanent teeth to grow in properly. A space maintainer may be indicated.

Late loss of baby teeth
Can contribute to misalignment or impaction of permanent teeth. Removal of these teeth may be recommended.

Extra or missing permanent teeth
Can result in excess crowding or spacing as well as misalignment of the bite.