Orthodontic Changes

As the orthodontic changes in my mouth progress, my bite is changing for the better. As my teeth move in to a more ideal position, there will be less stress on my jaw muscles and joints. Since I had an extra tooth in my lower jaw, my baby tooth, the others had to be pushed out of the way. This resulted in my canine tooth becoming rotated and elevated above the rest of the teeth. You may be wondering why I didn't have my baby tooth removed sooner. If it had been done when I was a child, my teeth would have probably shifted into the correct position on their own. When I was a young adult going to school, I didn't want to have metal braces. After I became a dentist, I knew that my baby tooth would eventually loosen and then I would have to deal with the space. In most people, the lower teeth become crowded over time. I was allowing the crowding to occur so that I would have less of a space to close. Now, simply straightening and de-rotating the teeth will take care of most of the spacing. If I had done it sooner, the space would have been larger. Besides, clear aligners were not in widespread usage in the past, so I am benefiting from the advancement in technology. I didn't have to have metal braces, my space is smaller and it will take less time to close. Sometimes procrastination pays off.

As people progress through orthodontic treatment, sometimes the bite will get worse before it gets better. Depending on the situation they were starting with, the orthodontic changes may cause teeth to be further from an ideal position in the first stages of treatment. Children are not normally bothered by this and can adapt to almost anything. In adults, the original patterns of muscle and teeth positions are strongly ingrained and when teeth move, those patterns are disturbed. In a small percentage of people, this can result in pain in the jaw joints or muscles. This pain is usually transitory and will resolve on its own as the teeth are brought into better alignment. Muscles, teeth and joints need to function in harmony and they usually can't do that if the teeth are misaligned. For long term health and joint and muscle stability, it is best to have a balanced bite. The bite needs to be checked and fine tuned after orthodontic treatment. I will discuss this in more detail next time.

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