You want your child to have a healthy confident smile for life, but you don’t want them to undergo complex orthodontics, especially if it is preventable.
Orthodontic treatment may not be completely avoidable, but the complexity can be significantly reduced with early diagnosis and treatment of the causes of tooth crowding.
Prevention is better than cure.
Research is increasingly finding links between oral health and general health. Addressing the problems which lead to tooth crowding can also benefit your child’s health.
Dr Leo Goh has a special interest in dentofacial orthopaedics and orthodontics. He believes it is important to identify tongue tie, tongue thrust, narrow palates, dry lips, tooth wear, crowded teeth, narrow jaws, large tonsils/snoring/mouth breathing during a dental examination and the earlier this occurs, the better chance we have to give your child a confident healthy smile for life.
It is particularly important for dentists to identify signs and causes of night time mouth breathing. If untreated, it can result in: sleep disordered breathing; reduced oxygen supply to a child’s developing brain; poor sleep, resulting in ADHD-like behaviours; poor tongue position, causing narrow jaw development; jaw joint and bite issues and an increased likelihood of the need for complex orthodontics.
Having the cause of the mouth-breathing or snoring addressed early is essential. If it is a medical problem, then referral to an ENT specialist is warranted. However, if it is habitual, then it should be addressed along with any other habits, like thumb-sucking.
Stephanie Attard, one of our dental hygienists, is trained in orofacial myology and helps kids “quit” the thumb-sucking or mouth-breathing habit.
Nurturing a healthy smile requires management of the challenges presented at each stage of your child’s development; and as long as your child is still growing, they can benefit from a holistic approach to orthodontics, which minimises tooth crowding and the need for future extraction of healthy teeth.
Our centres of dental excellence offer you all the capabilities, in each of the locations, to carry your kids through all their changing dental health and orthodontic needs as they grow into adults and beyond. We provide you the planned, team approach necessary to achieve a healthy confident smile for your child, with the convenience of keeping all your dental visits to one place.
To arrange a complimentary early intervention assessment or get more information at a Kids’ Health Day – Bookings are essential
In Boroondara call: Q Dental 9817 5050
OR in Stonnington call: Dental Off Chapel 95105198
