Suffolk Orthodontist Answers “Am I Too Old For Braces?”
You are never too old to get braces! At Davillier Orthodontics, we get patients of all ages. The ideal time to get braces is at a very young age; however, many our patients get braces or Invisalign treatments to improve their smiles.
Consider the following
Ideally, human enamel would line up as neatly as the keys on a piano. Unfortunately, many people contend with crooked teeth, crowded smiles, or poorly aligned bites.
These troubles also increase more than simple beauty concerns. Crowded or overlapping tooth can be challenging to clean, making teeth decay and gum ailment extra unlikely. Teeth that do not come collectively align in precise fashion when you shut your jaws— malocclusion, or “bad bite”— can create and environment of chewing and swallowing problems. Poor teeth alignment can also make it challenging to pronounce while placing stress on the chewing muscles, concurrently inflicting facial pain.
Although childhood is the best time to make adjustments in the positioning of the teeth, a larger percentage of adults are opting for orthodontic solutions while enjoying fantastic, life changing results. The American Association of Orthodontists notes that one in 5 orthodontic sufferers is over age 18.
If you are thinking about an orthodontic cure to correct longstanding beauty or biting and alignment issues as a result of tooth loss, consider the following;
The bones of adults having long stopped growing, in some instances, require structural adjustment which can’t be completed without surgery.
As such, specific corrective measures may require a longer period of time to arrive at favorable outcomes. While the time it takes to straighten a specific tooth will vary depending upon a multitude of factors, on average, such procedures require between one to two years in length.
In some cases, Orthodontic treatment is enhanced by collaborating with periodontic specialists, to mitigate bone loss as a result of various forms of gum disease.
How braces work
The science of orthodontics depends on putting strain on a tooth’s enamel, to move their position. The orthodontist accomplishes this by using mechanical devices, or appliances, directly attached to the enamel, to gently push the structures into the proper direction. When tooth enamel is subjected to stress from one side, its root presses towards the underlying alveolar bone. As the teeth migrate, new bone builds up in the area vacated in direct proportion to the aspect of the root. This prevents the enamel from transferring into its original position.
Traditional braces are the most used orthodontic appliance. While extraordinarily versatile, capable of aliging a tooth in any direction, these appliances rely on the use of brackets, cemented or bonded, to enamel surfaces.
More specifically, Archwires, which are connected to the molars on both dental arches, are threaded thru brackets to direct specific pressure along teeth. Further still, sometimes elastic bands or springs are connected to the Archwire, increasing the effectiveness of directional push.
Typically, placement requires one to two hours and while minimal pain or discomfort is expected, over-the-counter medication, acetaminophen – ibuprofen, is often more than enough to provide a pain-free environment, within a day or two.
https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/are-you-too-old-for-braces
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Updated November 25, 2022