My daughter is in college and has a problem with her bite. Her front teeth hit directly over her lower teeth when she bites down, and she has no overjet. Her dentist told her she needs braces. How will her orthodontist help correct this problem?
October 6, 2011
Answer: Braces with no overjet
It can be achieved by moving the lower teeth back or the upper teeth forward, depending on your bite. We like some overlap between upper and lower anteriors, otherwise your chances of wearing down your anterior teeth are much higher due to zero overbite.
Helpful
October 6, 2011
Answer: Braces with no overjet
It can be achieved by moving the lower teeth back or the upper teeth forward, depending on your bite. We like some overlap between upper and lower anteriors, otherwise your chances of wearing down your anterior teeth are much higher due to zero overbite.
Helpful
October 9, 2011
Answer: Correcting an edge-to-edge bite
To correct the kind of bite you describe, her orthodontist will need to carefully make diagnsostic records to evaluate the cause of the problem. Here are some examples:
It can be skeletal in nature where the upper jaw bone is smaller in length than the lower. Although this might require jaw surgery if severe, sometimes we can move the teeth to mask the underlying bone issue by tipping the upper teeth forward and the lower teeth back.
It could be that there is more crowding of the upper teeth than the lower. Simply aligning the upper teeth with help to increase the overjet as they "round out" and move forward.
It could be a tooth size discrepancy, meaning the proportion of upper teeth width compared to lowers is off a bit. Commonly we see small upper lateral incisors, which lead to an edge to edge type bite. In this case aligning the teeth and leaving space around the small lateral incisors helps to increase the overjet. The laterals can then be restored by the dentist with bonding or veneers to a more proportional and esthetic size and shape.
These are the most common reasons for the bite your described. Of course a consult with a good orthodontist will help to figure this out. This is the kind of case many of us love to work with.
Good luck....Dr. Depew
Helpful
October 9, 2011
Answer: Correcting an edge-to-edge bite
To correct the kind of bite you describe, her orthodontist will need to carefully make diagnsostic records to evaluate the cause of the problem. Here are some examples:
It can be skeletal in nature where the upper jaw bone is smaller in length than the lower. Although this might require jaw surgery if severe, sometimes we can move the teeth to mask the underlying bone issue by tipping the upper teeth forward and the lower teeth back.
It could be that there is more crowding of the upper teeth than the lower. Simply aligning the upper teeth with help to increase the overjet as they "round out" and move forward.
It could be a tooth size discrepancy, meaning the proportion of upper teeth width compared to lowers is off a bit. Commonly we see small upper lateral incisors, which lead to an edge to edge type bite. In this case aligning the teeth and leaving space around the small lateral incisors helps to increase the overjet. The laterals can then be restored by the dentist with bonding or veneers to a more proportional and esthetic size and shape.
These are the most common reasons for the bite your described. Of course a consult with a good orthodontist will help to figure this out. This is the kind of case many of us love to work with.
Good luck....Dr. Depew
Helpful