If you are a parent, you are well likely to be concerned about at which age you should start taking your child to see an orthodontist. The general rule of thumb is to start taking your kid for an orthodontic visit as soon as the permanent teeth start coming in. The average age group for children is 7 years. It will help the doctor to identify any potential developmental problems, uneven jawbone, misaligned teeth uneven bites, or overcrowding in your child at a young age. This will prove to be immensely helpful for your child in the long run. However, this doesn’t mean that they will get braces right away!
What are the best time and the right age to bring your child for an initial orthodontic visit?
The ideal age for kids is seven. If your kid is 7 years old, you should start scheduling an orthodontic visit. However, if your child is over the age of seven, and you are observing the growth of crooked permanent teeth, uneven jawbone, excessive gaps between permanent teeth, or noticeable underbite or overbite, you should schedule an appointment to address issues with gaps, monitor the jaw bone and to practice guidelines recommended by your dentist for best results and aesthetic effects.
What to expect from your initial orthodontic visit?
The utmost advantage of scheduling orthodontic appointments from a young age is that early treatment and diagnosis prevent serious problems from developing. In addition to that, the orthodontist may also identify misaligned teeth or uneven jawbones at an early age, provide you with guidelines to prevent serious complications from developing, and then schedule treatment at an appropriate age. From your initial visit, you can expect the orthodontist to:
- Thoroughly examine your child’s mouth, teeth, and jaws and undergo a brief consultation.
- Inquire about your child’s chewing, swallowing, and parafunctional habits to collect history
- Take an X-ray of your child’s mouth to examine better
- Monitor and guide jaw growth
- Address issues with gaps in between the permanent teeth to help improve the aesthetics and enable your child to smile confidently.
- Correct harmful oral habits
- Monitor crooked or misaligned permanent teeth and create a treatment plan to reduce alignment problems and prevent serious complications from developing at a later age.
However, your child will not get braces right away! The average age for girls to get braces is between 11 to 14 years old while for boys it ranges between 12 to 14 years old. Before that, your orthodontist will suggest beneficial alternatives such as retainers, clear veneers, or Invisalign treatment to help straighten teeth, improve aesthetics, and prevents serious problems from developing.
Early visits help in the identification of problems at an early stage. With the growing age, the complications begin to progress too. To obtain the best results and to take care of your child’s oral health, it is highly recommended that you start scheduling orthodontic appointments at an early age.
Schedule your child’s appointment
If you are looking for a dental clinic with an affordable orthodontist for you or your child, head over to our website to book a FREE initial appointment today! For further queries, please feel free to call us at 954-745-4749.
