Clear Aligners Corner
Can We Treat Kids in Mixed Dentition with Clear Aligners? The Benefits of Early Orthodontic Treatment for Kids By Dr. Stephane Reinhardt, DMD, Director of Education Program for The C.L.E.A.R. Institute Inc., www.theclearinstitute.com
Can we treat kids in mixed dentition with clear aligners? That question is often asked: will children wear the aligners? The answers: Yes and yes! Young patients have been wearing appliances through the years and have excellent compliance. Appliances that are a lot more challenging to wear than aligners (twin blocks, Haas, split plates, quad helix, headgear, etc...). Teeth are not selective; whether it is a primary or permanent tooth, if you apply a constant force and they are not blocked or ankylosed, they will move! With kids, we want to prevent problems, keep space, maintain space and/or regain space that we have lost for some reason. Preventive and interceptive orthodontic treatment is sometimes unclear because it implies that if we do it correctly and intercept a problem, there will be no need for further orthodontic treatment, which is often not true! Intercepting a problem and preventing some issues will be very helpful in reducing the severity of problems but rarely is so successful that later treatment becomes unnecessary. Our responsibility as primary care providers is to see the problems, understand the consequences they could bring and inform the parents/patients about them. Preventive and interceptive orthodontics are essential to ensuring our kids have the best dental future possible. As dentists, we know that the earlier we can identify potential problems and nip them in the bud, our patients will be better off. But why is this so important? Let’s look closer at why preventive and interceptive orthodontics benefit growing children.
environment where your patient's oral health gets off to a great start. It involves monitoring tooth development and jaw growth to ensure that everything stays balanced as they grow up. This can include using space maintainers to keep teeth from drifting into empty spaces left by baby teeth or using expansion appliances to make room for permanent teeth when needed. What Is Interceptive Orthodontics? Interceptive orthodontics focuses on correcting problems before they become more severe in the future. This type of treatment is usually done between the ages of 6 and 10 because that’s when a child’s mouth is still developing quickly enough for us to make changes relatively easily. It can involve anything from addressing bad habits such as thumb sucking or tongue thrusting to simple procedures like widening palates or removing teeth. Why Is Early Intervention So Important? Early intervention helps us prevent more severe issues from occurring in the future. By taking steps now, we can help ensure our patients have healthy mouths well into adulthood and beyond! Plus, starting treatment early means that a patient’s overall treatment time could be shorter than it would be
What Is Preventive Orthodontics? Preventive orthodontics is all about creating an 38
