Pinoy Dentist

Say you visited your dentist in Manila for a regular check-up and he diagnoses you with poor bite or malocclusion. What does this mean, and most importantly, what should you do next? In most cases, you’ll be referred to an orthodontist if your dentist is not practicing orthodontic services himself in his clinic.

An orthodontist is a type of dentist that specializes in diagnosing, treating, and preventing alignment problems of the teeth and in the jaw region. These issues, commonly known as malocclusions, refer to a number of possible conditions according to Web MD:

(Image Source: westsidepedo.com/orthodontics/common-conditions)

• Overbite – the upper front teeth reach too far forward over the lower front teeth. This can cause the lower teeth to bite into the mouth’s roof in severe cases. 

• Underbite – the opposite of overbite, where the lower teeth protrudes forward, appearing in front of your upper teeth. 

• Crossbite – this is when the upper teeth fit into the wrong side of the lower teeth when biting, causing misalignment of jaw growth and tooth stratification. 

• Open bite – occurs when there is a gap between the upper and lower front teeth, which may cause tongue thrusting and other unwanted habits. 

• Misplaced midline – an orthodontic condition where the center of your upper front teeth does not align with the center of you lower front teeth. 

• Spacing & crowding – happens when there is too little or too many teeth, which may cause gaps or impaction (teeth that fail to erupt within the expected development period). 

• Rotation – occurs when a tooth turns from its normal position. 

• Transposition – this is when teeth erupt in one another’s place. 

• Overjet – aka upper protrusion, which happens when the upper front teeth are pushed outward. This is also sometimes called “buck teeth”. 

Your orthodontist in Manila may treat these conditions depending on the results of your examinations. He may use fixed dental braces to correct the issues in severe cases, or have removable appliances like aligners, retainers, and headgears used to treat them.

If you need to correct alignment issues on your teeth and jaw, don’t hesitate to seek the help of an orthodontist in Manila or anywhere near you. Say goodbye to your malocclusions and say hello to a healthier, more pleasing appearance of your mouth.



References:

http://www.colgate.com/en/us/oc/oral-health/life-stages/teen-oral-care/article/what-is-orthodontics

http://www.colgate.com/en/us/oc/oral-health/cosmetic-dentistry/adult-orthodontics

https://www.webmd.com/oral-health/tc/types-of-malocclusion-topic-overview

https://westsidepedo.com/orthodontics/common-conditions/

https://www.hecoxdentistry.com/procedures/orthodontics/who-can-benefit-from-orthodontics/