Early Treatment

Usually by age seven, your child's permanent incisors and first molars are present. At this time, an orthodontist can evaluate the upper and lower jaw relationship, the occlusal relationship (bite), as well as present and future crowding. In most cases where early orthodontic treatment is recommended, the objective is to:

  • Correct jaw disproportions before aligning the teeth
  • Prevent injury to protruded teeth (teeth that stick out)
  • Manage insufficient archlength (crowding )
  • Eliminate damaging habits
  • Improve speech development
  • Reduce the need to extract permanent teeth

early treatmentUsually early treatment is completed in about year and can help correct certain problems before they become complex. In some cases, early treatment will eliminate the need for future orthodontic care. At Dingus Orthodontics, we make every effort to start treatment at an age that will minimize the length of time that our patients are in treatment.