It isn’t uncommon for children to be referred to us for specialist orthodontic advice or treatment.  If this happens to your child, don’t worry: it isn’t always necessary or desirable to intervene and any intervention will be tailored to the needs of your child.

Common Dental Issues in Childhood

If this happens to your child, don’t worry; bear in mind that it is important to listen to expert advice, but this won’t always result in treatment being necessary.  However, you need to follow up with an expert in order to make a decision about your child’s treatment from a position of knowledge.

What are the common issues behind a referral to an orthodontic expert?

There are many reasons why a child could be referred to an orthodontic specialist.

These include:

  • Teeth not erupting
  • The position or angle the teeth are coming through at
  • Crooked teeth
  • Thumb sucking has affected tooth growth
  • Someone at school has said something about the child’s teeth that has upset them
  • Trauma – for example, if they were playing sport at school without wearing a mouthguard and teeth were damaged in an accident or collision

What should parents do if they have a concern about their child’s teeth?

You’re always welcome to book in your child for a check-up.  We can book a short appointment with our orthodontist at the same time as their regular check-up so you don’t have to come in twice.

Usually, we will take X-rays.  For example, to check that the unerupted teeth are present and there is nothing missing.

Sometimes we will recommend interceptive treatments if we are concerned about the growth of the jaw or the bite.  However, this isn’t always the case.  Sometimes we will simply keep the growth in review.

We will always try to undertake work on a non-extraction basis if we can.

If you have any concerns, it is important that you book your child in for a check-up at as early a stage as possible.  This way, we have the chance to do the interceptive treatment if it is required.  You don’t want to leave it until they are in their mid-teens and treatment becomes more significant because they’ve already had their growth spurt.

Even if we decide to wait and just keep an eye on things, it is important that we make that decision together and based on the right information.

If you do have any concerns about the growth of your child’s teeth, please book a check-up with us as soon as you can.

You can do this by booking with us today!