When most people think about braces, they picture someone with a straight smile. But is that all braces can do? Our Surrey orthodontists dive deeper into whether braces can fix jaw alignment issues or if they are only designed for straightening teeth.
Dental Alignment vs. Jaw Alignment
To fully appreciate what braces can accomplish, it's important to understand the difference between dental alignment and jaw alignment. Two related but distinct aspects of your oral health.
Dental alignment refers to how individual teeth are positioned within the dental arches. When teeth are correctly aligned, they sit evenly in the upper and lower jaws, creating a balanced appearance and promoting uniform wear during chewing. Crooked, crowded, or gapped teeth are examples of dental alignment problems.
Jaw alignment refers to how the upper jaw (maxilla) and lower jaw (mandible) fit together when the mouth closes. Proper alignment ensures that the upper and lower teeth meet correctly, a condition orthodontists call occlusion. If jaw alignment is misaligned, it can cause different bite issues.
Both types of alignment are crucial for overall oral health. Misalignment in either area can lead to TMJ pain, uneven tooth wear, chronic headaches, chewing difficulties, and speech issues. Fortunately, orthodontic treatment can often resolve both problems at the same time.
Common Jaw Alignment Issues
Before exploring treatment options, it is useful to understand the common types of jaw alignment issues that orthodontists typically address.
- Overbite: The upper teeth overlap the lower teeth when biting. While a slight overlap is normal, a severe overbite can lead to wear on the lower teeth and put stress on the jaw joint.
- Underbite: The lower jaw protrudes forward, leading to the lower teeth extending beyond the upper teeth. This can impact chewing effectiveness, facial aesthetics, and may cause uneven tooth wear.
- Crossbite: One or more upper teeth bite inside the lower teeth, which may happen on one or both sides of the mouth. If not treated, crossbites can lead to uneven jaw growth and irregular wear patterns.
- Open Bite: The front teeth do not touch when the back teeth are closed, resulting in a vertical gap. This can make biting into foods challenging and may impact speech clarity.
Each condition ranges in severity from mild to severe, and treatment choices depend on several factors, such as the patient's age, the degree of misalignment, and whether the issue is mainly dental (tooth placement) or skeletal (jaw bone structure).
How Braces Influence Jaw Alignment
Braces work by applying controlled, consistent pressure to gradually shift teeth into their ideal positions. As teeth move along the dental arches, this process can greatly affect how the upper and lower jaws align, ultimately enhancing the bite.
For mild to moderate jaw discrepancies, braces alone can frequently fix the issue. By repositioning the teeth, orthodontists can change the bite relationship and enhance how the jaws align. Carefully planned tooth movement, usually combined with elastic bands connecting the upper and lower braces, can gradually guide the jaws into a better fit.
The success of braces in correcting jaw alignment relies on various factors, such as the extent of misalignment, the patient's age, and whether the jaw bones are still growing. In childhood and adolescence, the jaw bones are more pliable, allowing for easier influence on their position and growth through orthodontic treatment. However, even in adults, braces can lead to improvements in bite function by carefully aligning the teeth.
Advanced Orthodontic Treatment Options
While braces are highly effective for many jaw alignment issues, certain cases may require additional treatments. Severe skeletal discrepancies, when the jaw bones are badly misaligned, may require more than just moving teeth to get the best outcome.
Orthopedic Appliances for Growing Patients
Orthodontists can use specialized orthopedic appliances to guide jaw development in children and teenagers with developing jaws. These devices leverage the body's natural growth patterns to influence jaw positioning before the bones fully mature.
Common orthopedic appliances include:
- Headgear: Applies external force to guide upper jaw growth and correct overbites.
- Palatal expanders: Widen the upper jaw to create more space and correct crossbites.
These appliances are generally used before or alongside braces as part of a complete treatment plan. Early use of orthopedic devices can help avoid the need for more invasive procedures later.
Orthognathic Surgery for Severe Cases
When jaw misalignment is severe and growth is finished (generally in adulthood), orthognathic or jaw surgery might be needed. This surgical procedure adjusts the position of the upper jaw, lower jaw, or both to achieve proper alignment and facial harmony.
Orthognathic surgery is usually performed alongside orthodontic treatment in a coordinated manner. Braces are applied before surgery to align the teeth in advance of the jaw repositioning and are kept afterward to refine the bite as the jaws recover in their new alignment. This collaborative approach, involving both an orthodontist and an oral surgeon, provides a thorough correction of dental and skeletal problems.
The Orthodontist's Role
Properly diagnosing jaw alignment issues requires specialized expertise and advanced diagnostic tools. Orthodontists complete an extra two to three years of specialized training beyond dental school, making them uniquely qualified to assess and treat both dental and skeletal relationships.
During a thorough orthodontic assessment, your orthodontist will use X-rays, digital scans, and detailed bite analysis to evaluate how your teeth and jaws align. This comprehensive assessment enables them to create a personalized treatment plan tailored to your individual needs, age, growth stage, and the severity of any misalignment.
This personalized approach ensures that treatment addresses not just the aesthetic appearance of your smile but also the functional aspects, like how your teeth meet, how efficiently you can chew, and how comfortably your jaws work together. The orthodontist's expertise is essential in determining whether braces alone will suffice or whether additional interventions are needed for optimal results.
Why Early Evaluation Makes a Difference
The Canadian Association of Orthodontists advises that all children should have their initial orthodontic assessment by age seven. Although this may seem premature, it is crucial because, by this age, the first adult molars usually emerge, and the front permanent teeth are starting to appear. This early evaluation enables orthodontists to assess the developing bite and detect potential issues while the jaw continues to grow.
Early detection often makes correction easier. When jaw alignment issues are identified during childhood, orthodontists can leverage natural growth patterns to guide jaw development. This interceptive approach can tackle emerging problems before they worsen, possibly preventing the need for jaw surgery later in life.
Early intervention can typically help:
- Create adequate space for permanent teeth to erupt properly
- Correct crossbites before they cause asymmetric jaw growth
- Address harmful oral habits like thumb sucking or tongue thrusting
- Guide jaw growth to improve facial balance and proportion
- Reduce the complexity and duration of future orthodontic treatment
It's important to note that not all children assessed at age seven require immediate treatment. Often, the orthodontist will just observe the child's growth and development, starting active treatment only when the timing is ideal.
For adults who missed early evaluation, it's never too late to seek orthodontic care. While adults can no longer take advantage of jaw growth modification, braces and clear aligners can still dramatically improve bite function and comfort, and surgical options are available when needed for severe skeletal discrepancies.
A Balanced Smile: Function Meets Aesthetics
Orthodontic treatment is about much more than creating a straight, aesthetically pleasing smile. By improving both tooth and jaw alignment, braces help ensure that your bite functions properly, reducing strain on your jaw joints, preventing uneven tooth wear, and supporting long-term oral health.
Whether you're dealing with crooked teeth, an uncomfortable bite, jaw pain, or concerns about facial harmony, an orthodontic assessment can identify the underlying cause and outline your treatment options. Modern orthodontics offers a range of solutions, from traditional braces to clear aligners and advanced orthodontic devices, all designed to create not just a straight smile but a healthy, functional bite that benefits you for life.