Phases of Treatment

Younger children (ages 7-11), who have chewing difficulties or psychological problems due to peer group teasing, may benefit most from a two-phased orthodontic treatment plan. An early interceptive phase may be necessary to correct the more obvious problems, and then the routine problems can be addressed later in a second phase.

The first phase of treatment is accomplished with short term partial braces, or a fixed appliance. Specific goals are set for this phase and then all appliances are removed until the patient reaches dental maturity (usually between age 11 and 13). A second phase with full braces is then used to detail the final position of the teeth.

Phase One Treatment: Limited objectives which can be treated in one to one and a half years.

• Alignment of severely crowded or severely protrusive teeth. Partial braces in only one arch is common, and time in the braces is limited. Generally, the objective is to correct some major malformation or abnormal eruption pattern, and then hold that position until more growth occurs.

• Habit correction involving fingers, thumbs or tongue thrusting.
• A fixed appliance can be used  to expand the arches in order to correct cross bites or make room for crowded out teeth.

Phase Two Treatment: Full treatment objectives generally treated in two years.

• Full tooth alignment and final positioning of the jaw. This phase of treatment is the typical comprehensive teen orthodontic treatment initiated between age 11 and 13.

To review: instead of one comprehensive course of treatment as a teenager, the idea of two phase treatment is to allow the young, growing, child to have specific problems solved early. Not all orthodontic problems can be solved at this age but in certain instances early treatment can help avoid potentially greater future problems. The typical age when full treatment is started is age eleven to thirteen.