Orthodontist explains why baby plates don't always help to straighten teeth

Parents sometimes hear doctors say, “Let’s put a baby on an orthodontic record and it all works out.” However, such a promise often results in a loss of time, money, and a missed age when a problem could be solved effectively. Russian orthodontist Andrei Zhuk gave a clear plan how to understand when the plate is really needed, and when it becomes just an imitation of treatment.

The album is not a universal solution

- To say that all children's records are useless would be wrong. But to say that they can align the teeth in a broad sense is also wrong, explains Andrei Zhuk. Removable children's devices have narrow indications. They can help with individual crossbite options, with arc expansion in childhood, or as part of early interception treatment. But this is not the same as fully aligning your teeth.

In modern orthodontics, two tasks are always shared. The first is to intercept the growth problem if there is the right window to intervene. The second is to really align the teeth, build a bite and achieve a stable result. The record often refers only to the first task.

- Parents are not sold a machine, but hope, says the expert. They say, “Now put the record and the teeth will be even.” But very often this is meaningless as a promise to straighten your teeth completely.

Why Parents Are Disappointed

The first reason is removability. Everything removable in pediatric orthodontics depends on discipline. The child should wear the device for the right number of hours, do not forget, do not lose, do not break. It is difficult for a small patient to consistently perform the regimen for months. If you don’t wear it properly, it won’t work.

The second reason is limited capabilities in biomechanics. The plate does not give such control over the teeth as a full-fledged fixed brace system.

The third reason is that parents confuse early treatment with final treatment. Yes, at the age of 7-9, sometimes you really need an early machine to fix a specific growth problem. But after this, the second stage is often still required - full treatment in adolescence.

- When the family initially does not understand that the record is only the first stage, there is a feeling that the treatment did not help, explains Andrey Zhuk. In fact, it could have helped in its narrow task, it was simply given too much expectation.

When the record is justified

The doctor lists situations when the removable device may be reasonable: correction of some forms of crossbite, individual options for expanding the upper jaw at an early age, creating conditions for proper eruption of permanent teeth, eliminating functional displacement and ensuring the proper development of the jaws.

- But these are narrow clinical situations, and not a universal answer to the question of how to align the teeth of the child, emphasizes the orthodontist.

When a record is a waste of money

The expert calls cases when the record is especially often useless. These are attempts to solve the problem of crowding as such, when permanent teeth are already uneven, unfolded, there is not enough space. Or when the device is prescribed without a clear purpose and clear forecast. Or when the child’s age and behavior clearly will not be able to wear it properly.

- In such cases, the probability of disappointment is very high. That doesn't mean the machine is bad. This means that the testimony was chosen incorrectly, says Andrei Zhuk.

Labels and braces - different tools

Sometimes parents compare the record to braces as if they were competing goods. But in reality, they are often different tools for different tasks. The record is sometimes an early stage. Braces are often a tool for accurate alignment of teeth and full bite correction.

- They do not always replace each other, says the doctor. And sometimes it’s much more honest to watch a child, control growth, wait for the right time and then start a really effective stage than to pretend for years that the problem is already being treated.

The main question for consultations

Andrey Zhuk advises parents to ask the doctor not the question of cost, but this: "What specific problem should this device solve now and what will be the next stage of treatment?"

- If the doctor responds clearly: “We correct the transverse narrowing, eliminate the functional shift, create a place for the permanent teeth to erupt and control the growth of the jaws, and then we will observe or move to the second stage”, – this is a professional conversation. If the answer sounds like “Well, put a record, teeth are trimmed”, without a clear goal and understanding what will happen next, this is a reason to be wary.