Q. Early treatment has been recomended to me for my daughter. When I had braces I had to wait for all my permanent teeth to come in. Does early orthodontic treatment work?

Early orthodontic intervention during the mixed dentition phase is invaluable when used to intercept future problems, take advantage of available growth, reduce the need to compromise in the treatment of the permanent dentition and make fixed appliance treatment ("braces") easier and shorter in duration. Appropriate interceptive techniques to modify skeletal growth, gain or save space, reduce overbites and correct crossbites should result in fewer compromises, a better occlusion during a shorter, second phase of treatment.

Q. Will early treatment eliminate the need for permanent tooth removal?

With the advent of direct bonded brackets in the 1970's and better understanding of early treatment options by the profession, extractions for orthodontic treatment have been greatly reduced. However, there will be some circumstances where extractions of permanent teeth are an unavoidable option. It is important to fully evaluate the efficacy of first phase treatment in every case to determine if the early treatment options proposed will have a good chance of accomplishing the goal of maintaining all the permanent teeth. Sometimes, even with the best compliance, space for all the teeth cannot possibly be attained, and therefore, will not be recommended.

Q. Will early treatment elimiinate full "braces" later?