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Eruption Guidance

Orthodontic Intervention with Eruption Guidance

There are many different types of dental appliances used for eruption guidance as a preventative tool to ensure proper alignment. Pre-eruption guidance is an orthodontic treatment method that provides expansion of the arches to prepare space for the erupting teeth long before they appear in the mouth. The use of pre-eruption guidance appliances and the timing of extractions of certain primary teeth help to align the teeth naturally as opposed to orthodontic mechanical movement of permanent teeth into alignment after they have erupted. Research shows that pre-eruption guidance produces far more stable tooth alignment than alternative treatments.

There are many different types of dental appliances used for eruption guidance as a preventative tool to ensure proper alignment. Pre-eruption guidance is an orthodontic treatment method that provides expansion of the arches to prepare space for the erupting teeth long before they appear in the mouth. The use of pre-eruption guidance appliances and the timing of extractions of certain primary teeth help to align the teeth naturally as opposed to orthodontic mechanical movement of permanent teeth into alignment after they have erupted. Research shows that pre-eruption guidance produces far more stable tooth alignment than alternative treatments.

Lateral spacing of the primary anterior teeth occurs as the permanent incisors are guided into the mouth without rotations. When the lower and upper incisors erupt, the teeth can be guided into place so that when the incisal edges of the lower incisors touch the lingual surface of the upper incisors, the perfect corrective placement is established.

When these teeth come into contact and are straight, adult collagenous fibers are gradually formed to provide stability in their position. In most cases, then the appliance is worn at night as the permanent incisors erupt, the teeth will erupt into stable alignment since sufficient space now exists.

The appliance is then worn about one night a week to retain these corrections until about 12 years of age, at which point the patient is either dismissed or assessed for further minor treatment.

Pre-Eruption Guidance

Pre-eruption guidance is more distinctive because unlike other approaches, a patient’s treatment results are achieved physiologically through muscle movements and removable functional spacer maintainers instead of mechanically through dental braces. This alleviates the need for braces to mechanically align or essentially repair the effects of mature teeth that erupted misaligned and crowded.

This form of early, interceptive orthodontic treatment can be started early for certain types of development, spacing and crowding problems before all teeth have erupted. Pre-eruption guidance treatment is usually begun after the four permanent upper and lower front teeth have erupted (approximately age 7).The goal of this treatment for children is to normalize and naturalize the dentition and then to allow the daily use of durable orthodontic retainers and the patient’s natural muscle development to guide future erupting teeth into an optimal position in the mouth over time. A major benefit of early interceptive care and guidance is that you can not only affect tooth position, but you can encourage proper growth and development of the jaw bones as well.

The Complimentary Consultation

Eruption guidance is all about using different treatment methods to create balance and harmony for all teeth to develop and for everything to function properly. Each and every child is different. There is no cookie-cutter approach or strategy when it comes to eruption guidance. It is all about assessing the class of malocclusions, the size and shape of the dental arches, the bite or crowding and providing the very best option to encourage proper jaw growth and guide the teeth into ideal placement.

It is important to have our pediatric dentists examine your child’s growth and development and discuss with you the idea behind eruption guidance and that an orthodontic consultation is properly timed and scheduled for the child to be properly assessed.

Get in Touch

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