If you or your child require dentofacial treatment, you may feel concerned about what it entails. When you find it challenging to communicate in public or chew your favorite food because of the ominous appearance of your face and teeth, finding a solution to the problem can boost your confidence forever.
Dentofacial orthopedics can help you get a happy smile. It is a form of dental care for everyone, including children, adolescents, and adults. The purpose of getting dentofacial treatment is to help reconstruct your facial development. Since dentofacial entails the teeth and the face, your orthopedic specialist can guide you through a proper treatment process for your dental problems. Here is why you need a dentofacial treatment:
What is Dentofacial Treatment?
Dentofacial treatment determines the best solution for problems with the mouth and teeth, particularly the jaw structure. The treatment can help repair or improve dental deformities caused by head and neck development issues. Dentofacial orthopedics can treat jaw offsets and tooth malocclusions in children and adults.
Why do you need Dentofacial Treatment?
You need dentofacial treatment if you suffer severe or moderate dental symptoms affecting your face or neck. You should visit your orthopedic specialist if you have dental symptoms. Here is why you need dentofacial orthopedics:
1. You need Dentofacial Treatment to correct your crowded teeth
Crowded teeth may need to be severe enough for your orthodontist to suggest surgery. But overlapping teeth are unattractive and can cause a cavity. When your teeth are crowded, it is challenging to clean them properly, which exposes you to the risk of tooth decay.
When the teeth are too many for the size of the mouth, it results in overcrowding. Patients with this condition can get orthodontic intervention through recommended treatment options such as wearing traditional braces or tooth extraction. After treating your overlapping teeth, you will have a straight smile that appears beautiful and helps you develop proper dental hygiene.
2. Dentofacial Treatment helps correct bad bites
Bad bites include underbites, overbites, crossbites, and open bites. Having any of these bite problems can lead to severe damage to the teeth and gums.
Breaking down the types of bite problems that different individuals suffer:
- Overbites occur when the lower teeth disappear every time you bite down.
- Underbites occur when the lower teeth stay above the upper teeth.
- Open biting happens when your top and lower teeth leave a large gap when they meet.
- A crossbite occurs when one or more upper tooth regions fail to align in front of the lower tooth region.
You can correct all bite problems through orthodontic treatment to improve dental health and boost overall confidence.
3. You need Dentofacial Treatment to reverse the effects of thumb and finger sucking
Finger or thumb sucking is a childhood habit that causes malocclusions if it continues for too long. It can stop the teeth from developing correctly or moving into a proper mouth position when a child grows permanent teeth.
Dentofacial treatment can help correct all malocclusions. With x-rays, your child’s dentist can observe the teeth to see if they will sprout in the wrong or correct positions. Therefore, an early orthodontic checkup is pertinent for children with thumb-sucking habits. Also, early orthodontic treatment can help nurture the teeth into a proper position to avoid facial and dental deformities.
4. Dentofacial Treatment can close gaps
Cleaning teeth can be difficult if you have dental problems like close gaps or overcrowding. Gaps in the teeth mean you have lost one or more teeth, which is the opposite of having overcrowded teeth. Correcting gaps in the teeth goes beyond cosmetic problems. Spaces in the teeth can trap food particles that gradually build up and cause cavities. Dentofacial treatment can help correct and close gaps, improve tooth cleaning, and improve overall health.
5. Dentofacial Treatment corrects jaw problems
Jaw correction is one of the most significant issues that dentofacial orthopedics entails. When you have deformation of the face and neck, it can cause headaches and chronic jaw pain. Also, misaligned bites cause different issues, such as muscle spasms, lockjaw, headaches, sinus pain, and tiredness. Chronic jaw problems can be corrected with surgery. After which, a patient can wear braces to reposition the teeth.
What are the benefits of getting dentofacial treatment?
- An orthodontist can perform painless corrections to malocclusion issues such as crowded dentures, jaw alignment, or crooked teeth.
- The treatment is mainly for patients who detect their alignment problems early, and early treatment can help prevent significant problems with your jaw and teeth in the future.
- Dentofacial treatment focuses on improving the overall structure of the face, not just the teeth alone.
- Crooked or overcrowded teeth are stressful to clean, but dentofacial orthopedic procedures help improve and maintain your oral health.
Why Is Dentofacial Treatment important for children and adults?
Before baby teeth begin to fall out, parents must identify early dental problems in their children. Malocclusion can lead to blockages in tooth position and jaw development. Sometimes, wearing clear aligners or braces alone can adjust the jaw correctly and reposition the teeth. At that young age, improving tooth placement is impossible. But the orthodontist can help prepare the jaw for proper placement during the child’s teenage phase.
Adult patients can benefit from dentofacial treatment even though young children and teenagers are the best candidates for it. Adults, however, frequently require surgery to realign the facial bone or correct severe jaw issues. Constructive surgery is a difficult task to align, especially for the patient, but different individuals may respond to different treatments. Therefore, before beginning the orthodontic treatment that will be most effective for you, your orthodontist will first assess the severity of your dentofacial issue.
Conclusion
Getting dentofacial treatment is primarily done to fix the malocclusion. You can overcome many dental issues later in life when your jaw and teeth are in harmony. With dentofacial orthopedics, you can have a straight grin that makes it simple to brush and floss your teeth, helping you to maintain good oral health. A healthy mouth will have fewer chances of developing cavities, gum conditions, and enamel wear and tear.
