Who is an orthodontist and what he or she does?
A dentist who is specially trained to diagnose, treat and prevent irregularities related to the teeth and the jaws is better called an orthodontist. A qualified orthodontist not only corrects existing conditions but is also trained and skilled to identify and prevent any problem that may arise in course of time. Orthodontists treat patients from every age group including both children and adults.
There is a common notion that a perfect smile is related to sound health. This to true to a large extent as an individual’s oral health has an important role to play in overall wellbeing of that person. Issues like malocclusion or misaligned teeth make one prone to an array of dental problems including gum disease, tooth decay and difficulty in chewing. In severe cases of teeth misalignment chewing itself could be painful for individuals.
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Unfortunately, every individual does not take birth with the destiny of having straight teeth. One may suffer from a bad bite or there could be large gaps between the teeth. In such circumstances it is important to consult a dentist who specialises in orthodontic care suggest a busy dental professional based in London.
An orthodontist is a specialist dentist who deals with straightening the teeth and aligning the bite more than anything else.
What role do orthodontists play?
Now that we have some idea about what orthodontics is, let us try understanding the role the dental professional’s play. Orthodontics get the right training to fix various issues related to alignment of the teeth and the jaws and they rely on a range of dental devices to carry out their responsibilities. These devices include both removable and fixed varieties like braces, retainers and bands, etc. These appliances facilitate the shifting and positioning of the teeth in your mouth to fulfil the aim of your treatment. The following dental abnormalities can be corrected through orthodontic treatments –
- Bite issues like overbite, under bite, cross bite and others
- Crooked teeth
- Crowded teeth or teeth malocclusion
- Teeth positioned far away from each other
- Misalignment of the jaw
The primary objective of orthodontic treatments is the one and the same – improving your bite. Evenly spaced and straight teeth easily align with the teeth in the other jaw. When you have a healthy bite you can eat, chew and speak properly without any hurdle. The majority of patients who go to orthodontists are children and teenagers, who go for orthodontic braces, although these dental professionals can correct issues related to oral health of patients belonging to any age group
Training and education to be an orthodontic
In order to be an orthodontic expert, one has to go through standard college, dental school as well as orthodontic school. Once they complete dental school and become dentists, they have to go through an orthodontic residency program which lasts for about 2 to 3 years. So, it is absolutely correct to say all orthodontists are dentists but all dentists are not orthodontists. This training proves crucial in spelling professional success for the specialist dentists. In standard dental courses very limited orthodontic instructions are included and this makes the orthodontic residency program so crucial for these dental professionals.
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Orthodontic residency programs are carefully tailored to offer intensive and focused instruction for specialist dentists. The curriculums by and large emphasise on the following –
- Dento facial orthopaedics, in easier words which is guiding development of the teeth, jaws and the overall face and
- Orthodontics which involves how to move the teeth safely and properly
When you should see an orthodontic
The most obvious reason to go to an orthodontist is misalignment or malocclusion of the teeth. This problem is usually hereditary and occurs because of difference in sizes between the upper and the lower jaws of a person. The problem may also result from difference of disproportion in the size of the teeth and the jaws. The problem of malocclusion can lead to several complexities including overcrowding of the teeth, misshapen jaw and irregular bite pattern, etc.
Usually the problem of malocclusion of the teeth is treated in the following ways –
Braces or dental appliances
Your orthodontist will fix square bonds to your teeth which are made of plastic, ceramic or metal. A set of springs or wires exerts the necessary force which shifts your teeth gradually into the right alignment. Minor malocclusion is treated using clear braces whereas conventional metal braces are still the best remedy for severe cases of malocclusion of the teeth. Clear braces are also called aligners or clear aligners. In certain cases of malocclusion patients need a headgear which moves the teeth into correct alignment by exerting pressure from outside the mouth unlike braces and clear aligners.
A dental professional, who deals with smile orthodontics says, once the braces are removed from the teeth a patient has to wear retainers. A retainer is a custom fitted appliances which holds the teeth back in their corrected position and prevent them from sinking back into their initial position before the treatment.
Palate expanders are another common appliance used in modern orthodontics which deserves mentioning. It helps widening up the upper jaw and is commonly used in children. This device is effective making extra space in the mouth without extracting the teeth.
Orthognathic surgery
If you suffer from serous overbite or under bite problem then perhaps an orthognathic surgery can help sort out the problem. This surgery is also called orthodontic surgery and it can stretch the length of your jaw as well as shorten it. These patients require wires, surgical screws or plates to provide support to the jawbone. This surgery is usually reserved for patients whose jaw bones have grown to optimum level and other orthodontic procedures have not yielded desired results.
If you suffer from any of the following conditions then you must see an Orthodontics Consultation immediately without delay –
- Teeth crowding or lack of enough space for all the teeth to erupt properly
- Spacing or gaps existing between the teeth
- Over bite condition which involves the teeth at the upper jaw come over the teeth in the lower one
- Under bite which in other words means the teeth at the lower row are too far forward
- Open bite or existence of a vertical gap between the upper and the bottom teeth at the front of the mouth
- Cross bite is the condition where the upper teeth fit behind the teeth at the bottom when the mouth is closed
Dental orthodontics is also applicable to the condition of misplaced midline. In this condition the centre of the upper and the lower teeth do not line up properly. Contact 1A Orthodontics to get the proper treatment for your dental problem.
