Early Orthodontics for Your Child
Starting your child’s orthodontic treatment early will help prevent bad habits before they even start. Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics of Virginia follows the guidelines of the American Association of Orthodontics, which recommends that a child receive his or her first orthodontics screening by age 7. This is because the first adult molars tend to begin to emerge around age six, establishing the back bite.
At Pediatric Dental Care, we understand that every child is different and development varies. Our orthodontist can evaluate the relationships of your child’s front-to-back and side-to-side teeth. Early evaluation provides detection of problems as well as opportunity for effective treatments.
We offer many orthodontic treatments that can help correct parafunctional habits such as:
- Bruxism – grinding or clenching of teeth
- Tongue Thrusting – a behavior in which the tongue protrudes through the anterior (front) teeth during swallowing, speech and while the tongue is at rest
- Thumb Sucking
The earlier these problems are treated, the less damage they may cause. Early evaluation isn’t always followed by treatment, but it allows us to monitor your child’s growth until it is time for treatment. It also enables us to get a handle on the basic alignment of the teeth so that we can determine whether there is enough room in the mouth for all permanent teeth.
Get a head start! Schedule an early orthodontic screening for your child today.