What Is Orthodontics and What Are Orthodontic Treatments?

Orthodontics is one of the many dental specialties and deals with the alignment of improperly positioned teeth and jaws to improve their appearance, and more importantly, their health and functionality.

Who is an orthodontist?

A specialist in orthodontics is referred to as an orthodontist.

What is an orthodontic treatment?

It is nothing but a method to move/straighten your non-aligned teeth and augment both their functionality and appearance. Depending on your exact problem, your orthodontist would choose a suitable orthodontic treatment. It's an orthodontist's job to prevent, diagnose and treat your oral irregularities.

Why do you need an orthodontic treatment?

Crooked, non-aligned teeth are difficult to clean and thus susceptible to losses due to periodontal diseases and dental caries. Such teeth also cause stress on the chewing muscles which further leads to head, shoulder, neck and back pain and TMJ disorders.

When do you need an orthodontic treatment?

The foremost step here is to assess your teeth's present condition and determine how they are going to develop further. Using diagnostic tools such as plaster models, x-rays, clinical exams and photographs, an orthodontist will determine whether you're eligible for an orthodontic treatment or not.

Also, if you have any of the following conditions, you are definitely a suitable candidate:

  •  Underbite: This is when your lower teeth stick out or the front one too far back
  •  Overbite: The opposite of overbite
  •  Open bite: open slot between biting surfaces
  •  Spacing: Gaps and spaces between teeth
  •  Crowding: Too many teeth for the dental ridge to accommodate
  •  Crossbite: This is when your upper teeth do not come down in front of your lower                           teeth
  •  Misplaced midline: Misaligned upper and lower molars


How does an orthodontic treatment work?

An orthodontic treatment requires a number of different appliances used to retain oral muscles, help your teeth move and affect the growth of your jaws. Either fixed or removable, these appliances perform by placing pressure on your teeth or jaws.

Fixed appliances:
  •  Braces
  •  Fixed space maintainers
  •  Special fixed appliances


Removable appliances:
  •  Aligners
  •  Removable space maintainers
  •  Jaw repositioning appliances
  •  Palatal expander
  •  Removable Retainers
  •  Headgear
  •  Lip/cheek bumpers
  •  Headgear


How to take care of your orthodontic appliances?

Impeccable oral hygiene becomes all the important with orthodontic appliances. Make sure you brush and floss twice, daily and schedule regular appointments with your dentists. It's equally important that you maintain a balanced, nutritious diet and limit your sugar intake.


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Article Source: EzineArticles

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