You Deserve To Understand All Your Orthodontic Options

 

 

 

 

 

The right kind of orthodontic care makes a world of difference in a patient’s smile. The more options a dentist offers, the more likely you are to find the right solution for yourself or for a member of your family.

At Galleria of Smiles, we offer a variety orthodontic options for patients of all ages and at all stages of oral development. In today’s post, we will discuss how your age and your development may affect your orthodontic care.

The first step, however, is simply making an appointment so our dentists can examine your teeth, mouth, and jaw. You can call 918-302-2401 to reach our dentist office in Tulsa, or you can request an appointment by filling out our online form.

 

Phase I Orthodontics

We often emphasize the importance of routine dental visits in our posts. This is because we know that preventive care can help our patients avoid problems.

This isn’t just about cavities and gum disease. It’s also about orthodontic care. Phase I orthodontics can often begin before the age of 10.

Our dentists may be able to identify potential alignment and eruption issues as your child’s teeth and mouth are developing. Phase I orthodontics is a proactive way of guiding the development of your child’s mouth.

This can minimize and sometimes eliminate the needs for Phase II orthodontics, such as braces, when your child gets older.

Phase I orthodontics can be use to guide how teeth erupt and help maintain the proper spacing if a primary tooth falls out earlier than expected. Phase I care can direct the way your child’s mouth grows. This could create the room your son or daughter’s teeth need to emerge correctly.

 

Phase II

Phase II is more likely what comes mind when you think of orthodontics. It’s been normal for decades for American teens to wear braces (and sometimes more) to help straighten and shape the appearance of their smiles.

While braces are still an option, today’s teens have other options as well.

One of the most popular options is Invisalign®.

Like braces, Invisalign changes the appearance of a patient’s smile by moving his or her teeth into new positions. Invisalign can be used to fix overbites and underbites, crossbites, and open bites. It also can fix gaps between teeth, crowded teeth, and crooked teeth.

Unlike braces, Invisalign uses clear, plastic aligners rather than brackets and wires. This offers a number of potential benefits, not the least of which is that the aligners are virtually invisible when placed over a patient’s teeth.

If your teen does need braces, however, he or she may be happy to know that we provide NeoCrystal® braces for our patients at Galleria of Smiles. These use clear brackets that are less noticeable than traditional metal braces. Plus, the sapphires used for these braces don’t distort the color of natural teeth.

Last, but not least, we also offer lingual braces. Lingual is from the word “lingua,” which means tongue. These braces are placed on the back of your teeth (that is the side facing your tongue).

For many patients, these can be as effective as traditional braces. Their placement makes them much more discreet, however.

 

Short-Term Orthodontics

You may or may not be aware that orthodontics have become much more common among adults in the United States.

In some cases, this is because people did not receive orthodontic care when they were younger, and now they have the opportunity to receive it. In other cases, people did undergo orthodontic care previously, but their teeth relapsed. This is when teeth start to “drift” back toward their original positions.

For many adults, short-term orthodontics are preferable to more standard Phase II orthodontics.

Invisalign could be considered a short-term option for many patients. It may possible to use clear aligners to straighten your smile in about 12 months.

For people looking to complete their orthodontic care even faster, Six Month Smiles may be a better option.

The treatment uses braces in a more focused way than Phase II orthodontics. With Six Month Smiles, we use braces to move only the teeth in the front of your mouth. By moving fewer teeth (which also happen to be the lightest teeth), we may be able to transform the appearance of your smile in around six months.

 

Which Is Right For You, Your Family?

The team at our dentist office in Tulsa, OK, wants you and your family to have happy, healthy smiles. We know from experience that patients who have straight smiles have an easier time keeping their teeth clean. They also tend to be happier with how their smiles look.

To find out which treatment is best for you or someone you love, call us at 918-302-2401 or request an appointment online.