Last Updated on May 26, 2019 by Gio Greenard

When is the right time for an orthodontic checkup?

The short answer to this question is no later than the age of seven years old.

When most people think of orthodontics and patients who have received orthodontic treatment, they think of older children and teenagers. Receiving an early evaluation however can be one of the best ways that you can prepare yourself for an orthodontic treatment as well as get any early treatment out of the way in the event that a child may need two stage treatment. There are number of advantages to your child seeing an orthodontist no later than the age of seven and this figure has been determined by the American Association of Orthodontists.

Benefits of an Early Evaluation

Early evaluation can allow an orthodontist to spot any problems with the growth of a child’s jaw or with teeth as they are just starting to emerge and replace baby teeth. Even though a child’s baby teeth may appear straight but their emerging teeth may tell a different story. Taking the time to do x-rays early on can help an orthodontist to better identify problems and change the way that teeth impact and grow in. If jaws are misaligned, these issues can be fixed using nonsurgical methods. Resetting a jawline can be much more difficult in older patients as the bone structure is more permanently formed and far more difficult to manipulate.

An orthodontic checkup at an early age can help an orthodontist to monitor your child’s jaw growth and development to make sure that everything will form correctly. Monitoring this growth will allow an orthodontist to intervene if there are any issues so that manipulations can be made to make sure that a child’s smile has a chance to come in naturally.

The Risks of Avoiding Early Treatment

Serious and complicated issues can also occur without proper monitoring. A child could have issues with chewing, speaking or breathing if his or her permanent teeth are allowed to come in without proper consultation.

Early treatment reduces the amount of trauma when it comes to overall orthodontic treatment. It can help to improve appearance as a child grows, can help to lower the risk of serious issues arising and also can work to guide the growth and formation of jaws before they set in place.

Early treatment really is the best way that you can give your child an opportunity to form a perfect healthy smile.

If you have a child that requires early treatment or consultation please call Beach Braces today and we can schedule you an appointment.

Beach Braces 1730 Manhattan Beach Blvd. Suite B, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266TEL: 310-379-0006 Fax: (310) 379-7051.An Early Orthodontic Consultation – A key to Perfect Smile[super-post id=”sp54cc39a9c81cd” title=”Related Posts” items=”5″ show_title=”true” title_length=”0″ title_ellipsis=”…” show_thumbnail=”true” remove_no_thumbnail=”false” icon_height=”40″ icon_width=”40″ icon_empty=”3612″ show_comments=”true” comment_icon=”https://www.beachbraces.org/wp-content/plugins/super-post/images/comments.png” show_date=”true” show_date_link=”true” date_icon=”https://www.beachbraces.org/wp-content/plugins/super-post/images/date.png” date_format=”F j, Y” show_author=”false” author_title=”View all posts by {author}” author_icon=”https://www.beachbraces.org/wp-content/plugins/super-post/images/author.png” show_category=”false” first_category=”true” category_separator=”, ” category_icon=”https://www.beachbraces.org/wp-content/plugins/super-post/images/category.png” offset=”0″ page_range=”5″ load_text=”Load more posts” query=”related” order=”DESC” post_status=”publish” title_trim=”words” load_style=”none” template=”left”]

Dr Patricia Panucci

Dr Patti Panucci attended the University of Louisville School of Dentistry for four years, where she graduated with a DMD degree (May 2000) among the Top 10 in her class. Following that, she headed west to Los Angeles to complete her three-year residency at one of the top-ranked orthodontic programs in the country – the University of Southern California.

Along with her certificate in orthodontics, Dr. Panucci earned a master’s degree in craniofacial biology. During those three years, she fell in love with Southern California beach life and decided that this was where her future lay.