Roughly 3-5% of the population is missing a tooth. The tooth is absent because it never formed. If you walk down the street and pass twenty people, one of the people you pass will naturally be missing a tooth. The most common tooth to be missing is a third molar (no big deal) however, the […]
Elastics are requested to correct the fit of the bite. We ask patients to wear elastics because this is the only method to achieve the patient’s goals. Elastics are asked to be worn in many different directions and have names: Class II Elastics Class III Elastics Vertical Elastics
An illustration of a tooth that is not aligned and the effect of elastics and a light wire.
Most times a Herbst appliance will be sufficient to correct differences in jaw growth. In a few patients, the facial bones grow in so differently that a Herbst appliance or regular orthodontics are not enough to correct the bite. In order to achieve a functional bite the bones have to be realigned. Disparate facial bones […]
In some patients the lower jaw is small and needs assistance to match with the upper jaw. A Herbst (lower jaw advancing) appliance may be the additional help needed. Elastics sometimes are not enough to make the needed correction to the tooth alignment. A Herbst appliance is typically worn 8 months.
The canines (the fangs) are the “rogues” during human tooth development. Canines as a tooth type have the longest eruption time (from 3 months to 11 years). The are two possibilities in which the canines can destroy the permanent incisors: Sudden vertical growth of the face creates space above the maxillary incisors permitting the […]
