Posted by Dr. Bill Williams on January 16, 2023 · 4 Comments
The ability to treat your child using a technique called “expansion” is one of the biggest benefits to early orthodontics. As its name suggests “expansion” means expanding the bone with orthopedics to allow room for the teeth. When you have a cross bite or severe crowding it often affects other normal processes. When we are able to expand the arches, it helps create a bigger airway, normal swallowing and better aesthetics.
There many other reasons why it is important to have your son or daughter’s orthodontic expansion work done early in their childhood
- Their self esteem is certainly a factor to consider early on as this can be a source of teasing with their peers.
- Beyond the emotional factors there are many physical and health factors that make an even better argument for having expansion orthodontics at a young age.
- There are also times where expansion can prevent the necessity of orthodontic treatment later in your child’s life. When we can successfully expand the upper and lower arches, it often reduces the amount of time kids have to be in treatment or may even prevent the need for braces down the road.
Signs that your child might need expansion:
- When lower teeth are on the outside of the upper teeth while biting
- Over crowding of teeth
- Even thumb-sucking
Dentists can typically start this type of treatment as early as 6 and it is commonly done up to the ages of 12 or 13. Don’t put off asking your dentist important questions about your child’s teeth. It could change the course of their treatment saving you money and your child extensive orthodontic work down the line.
Happy New Year!
Hello there, I adore your blog. Is there something I can do to obtain updates like a subscription or something? I am sorry I’m not familiar with RSS?
Send in a support email to the owner of this site and they can likely put you on an email subscription. RSS is a way of having it come to you automatically into a reader. By just Googling RSS or YouTube searching RSS you can learn all you need to have all your favorite blogs sent to you in a folder on your computer.
By the way, thanks for reading my articles on dentistry.
Bill Williams, DMD, MAGD, MICCMO
Orthodontics is important for everyone, especially younger kids. I like the reasons you have listed here, especially the one about a child’s self-esteem. That is vital for a developing mind.
Thanks Silas…we appreciate the feedback! 🙂