Many parents maintain a reactive stance on dental health problems with their kids. They wait for a child’s permanent teeth to form fully before seeking remedies for obvious dental health issues. Unfortunately, this approach is counterproductive. It’s easier to treat orthodontic problems in the early stages of a child’s development.
At NOLA Pediatric Dentistry, we deliver interceptive orthodontic treatment to young children and pre-teens. Our treatments use early intervention to improve future outcomes for your children. They help correct dentofacial abnormalities before they transition into more challenging orthodontic problems. At each 6-month appointment, Dr. Kris does a complimentary orthodontic screening to assess your child’s smile. One thing to keep in mind while your child is in treatment with any appliance is to not allow your child to have any sticky candies. These can remove or destroy your child’s appliance!
What Is Interceptive Orthodontics?
Interceptive orthodontics is an aspect of early orthodontic treatment aimed at malocclusion prevention. The treatment also influences jaw development using removable or fixed appliances.
Interceptive treatment is effective because it tackles orthodontic problems when a child’s dentofacial features are not fully set. Many jaw and bite problems become more difficult to treat when a child reaches their teen years. In adulthood, correcting any such problems may require surgery.
The Best Age For Interceptive Orthodontics
There’s no best age to embrace interceptive orthodontics. You should bring in your child anytime there are obvious signs of dentofacial concerns. However, at NOLA Pediatric Dentistry, we recommend bringing your child for their first evaluation at the age of seven.
We will recommend a dental checkup timeline if our evaluations reveal that they don’t need interceptive orthodontic treatment yet.
Following the timeline allows us to monitor the child’s dental development, staying on top of any situations before they become major problems.
Our Interceptive Orthodontics Solutions
At NOLA Pediatric Dentistry, we deliver holistic interceptive orthodontics services for all children. Dr. Kris’s specialized training ensures comprehensive care for your child.
Space Maintainers
A space maintainer is a special orthodontic appliance that helps keep the space open for your child’s permanent tooth to grow into its rightful position. You can eliminate some corrective dental appointments with this simple removable or fixed device.
Your child’s baby teeth act as a guide for permanent ones. Space maintainers keep the new eruption from drifting into the wrong space following the early loss of baby teeth.
Crowding Prevention
At NOLA Pediatric Dentistry, we help prevent crowding through guided eruptions. We recommend starting this treatment when your child is around seven years of age or as the permanent front teeth begin to appear. Crowded teeth prevention encourages natural alignment.
Habit Appliance
Does your child have a finger or thumb habit? A habit appliance will help stop it. The device can also correct improper swallowing patterns and, perhaps most importantly, poor tongue positioning.
Tongue posture has a significant impact on teeth. Using a habit appliance helps minimize harmful impact. Keep in mind that habit appliances are not removable. They are designed for adhesion to the back molars. However, these appliances are not made to inflict any pain or discomfort on your child. Our goal is to not shame your child for their habit. These appliances are designed to be a friendly reminder to your child who wants to stop their habit, but may need a little help!
Palate Expanders
We use palate expanders to prevent malocclusion and misalignment. However, these devices can also help your child breathe better. Palatal expander devices feature acrylic and metal. As the names imply, they rest against the palate. We bond the devices to the upper molars to keep them in place.
However, we can also provide removable palate expanders. We give you special keys to make small adjustments to the palate expanders each day to gradually expand the palate size. We advise our patients to wear the expanders for three to six months for sustainable results.
NOLA Pediatric Dentistry can help put your child on a path to excellent dental health with interceptive orthodontics.