The goal of early orthodontics is to develop the jaw size in order to accommodate all the permanent teeth and to relate the upper and lower jaws to each other. Children sometimes exhibit signs of jaw problems as they grow. An upper and lower jaw that is growing too much or not enough can be recognized at an early age. If children after age 6 have this jaw discrepancy, they are candidates for early orthodontic treatment. Making corrections while the child is still growing may prevent future permanent tooth removal to correct overcrowding and/or surgical procedures to align the upper and lower jaws. Leaving such a condition untreated until all permanent teeth erupt could result in a jaw discrepancy too severe to achieve an ideal result with braces.

Benefits of early treatment:

• Eliminating adverse habits such as thumb or finger sucking, tongue thrusting and lip habits
• Correcting cross bite, tooth grinding, tooth interference and lower jaw displacement
• Avoiding fracture or loss of protruding teeth
• Assuring that the jaws and teeth meet properly during chewing and swallowing
• Correcting early misalignment of teeth and jaws
• Enhancing proper speech development
• Evaluating breathing problems that may adversely affect normal growth and jaw shape
• Improving self-image