In today's dentistry world, almost every other dental problem that affects your health or hinders you from a perfect smile can be corrected. Unfortunately, most people still live with some dental issues under the impression that they have permanently grown into their dental structure, or would be impossible to correct. Malocclusion problems primarily make up the bulk of such issues. An overbite, crossbite, underbite, open bite, irregular spacing, or even the mere crowding of teeth are some problems that orthodontics tackles.
Besides affecting your overall appearance, teeth that are not properly spaced or aligned can cause several problems to your overall dental health. They can, for instance, lead to tooth decay because they are harder to clean. They also often lead to early tooth loss. Some cases even lead to headaches, shoulder pains, neck stress and chewing discomfort. To correct such problems, dentists practicing orthodontics employ several devices in the trade.
The devices can be broadly categorized into two groups:
Fixed devices
Braces are perhaps some of the most common fixed devices employed by dentists in orthodontics. Braces are more functional when employed at an early stage of growth. With grown-ups, however, braces can still correct several problems albeit over a longer duration. Braces fix problems such as irregular spacing of teeth and improper alignment. Unlike the older versions, today's braces employ several aesthetic advancements that correct earlier problems involved with them such as the unattractive metallic bulk, or the colors of the band.
A fixed maintainer is yet another fixed device used for correcting teeth growth. If your child looses a baby tooth early, maintainers can be used to maintain the space until the permanent tooth grows. Without a maintainer, this child's teeth would grow irregularly given that space within the teeth alignment. In this case, the maintainer is anchored within the space via the next teeth and it maintains this space until the permanent teeth shoots out and occupies the space.
Removable devices
There are many removable devices employed in orthodontics. Aligners are fast replacing braces among adults for teeth alignment. Aligners lack the metal and wire part of braces. They are invisible and removable during eating and such activities. For these reasons, they serve many adults in aligning teeth properly over durations of months or even years. There are also removable space maintainers in this category. These are made of acrylic and use wires or plastic to maintain the space between teeth open, hence deter misalignment over time. There are also jaw repositioning devices which are worn either over the top or lower jaw to train the jaw into the proper position. They are employed when dealing with overbite and underbite cases. There are also removable retainers which are worn on the palate roof and prevent teeth from shifting back to their previous position after orthodontic treatments.
Several other devices fall within this category. Whether fixed or removable, the beauty of orthodontics is that most of these problems can be corrected without the need of an invasive oral procedure.
Share27 July 2016
Hello, my name is Catherine and this is my blog all about health and medical topics. I was inspired to start this blog by my husband who works in a hospital. He isn't a doctor, he works in a lab testing blood samples. However, he is extremely interested in medicine. When his grandma got sick, he quickly established what might be wrong and got her all the help she needed. Sometimes is the evening, we sit and read textbooks and talk about medicine. It sounds insane but we both really like it. I decided to start this blog to show off some of what I have learnt.