There is no one best time to start treatment with braces. The decision to start treatment is based on many factors like the nature of the problem, the stage of growth and the level of co-operation or motivation of the child to get treatment.
It is good practice to take your child for regular checkups and ask if a problem of crooked teeth is anticipated. A child can be examined at the ages of 7 years, 9 years and 12 years to check for problems related to the alignment of teeth and jaws.
Some problems like severe crowding (or lack of space for all the teeth), if detected early, can be treated by serial extraction from as early as seven years of age. In other cases, treatment may need to be done when all the baby teeth have been replaced by permanent teeth.
The timing of treatment depends on the nature of the problem . Here are some examples:
- Irregular teeth can sometimes be due to missing or buried teeth. This needs to be identified early for optimum management.
- When a child has difficulty putting the lips together, early myofunctional treatment – possibly even as young as 6 years — may help to promote growth to overcome this problem.
- Disproportionate jaws, can be treated effectively if it is detected before puberty.
It is difficult for the layperson to know which cases are to be treated at which time, so it is best to come for regular checkups and so that treatment can be well-timed.
