Ideally every child should receive an orthodontic examination by a trained orthodontist by the age of 10 to check the teeth are developing correctly. If your child has not yet been seen by a specialist orthodontist, why not make an appointment with Queens Gate Orthodontics?

Early Treatment of Children in South Kensington

Whilst orthodontic treatment is normally delayed until most adult teeth have appeared in the mouth, there are circumstances when children benefit from early orthodontic treatment.

For example, some of the upper incisor teeth may grow through on the wrong side of the lower incisor teeth (called a “crossbite”) and benefit from being corrected with a simple removable brace or Invisalign First®. Improving tooth position as adult teeth erupt, rather than waiting until later, may reduce treatment need in teenage years and treatment using Invisalign® can be very successful, even in young children.

Sometimes, a tooth may be impacted and need help to grow down correctly, or the prominence of the upper incisors (called an overjet) be so great, the child is at risk of bashing their front teeth, which can be heart breaking for everyone.

Young children with a gap between their front teeth (anterior open bite) due to poor tongue position may benefit from treatment using an innovative Myobrace™, combined with simple tongue and lip exercises. This comfortable appliance is made from soft plastic and aims to teach the child to swallow correctly, whilst re-training the tongue into a better resting position.

We recommend that every child should be seen by a specialist orthodontist by the age of 10 years old to check their dental development is progressing normally, and that adult canines, in particular, are growing in the correct position.

Look at our case reports for further information and please come to see us to discuss any problems that your child may have. We will always give you straightforward advice and will only recommend treatment for genuine benefit, avoiding unnecessary risks, which can be inadvertently introduced for young children whose root development is immature.

Case 1: Anterior crossbite and crowded teeth corrected with a removable expander brace and fixed braces

Problem:

This young girl had crowded incisors, and her slightly rotated upper lateral incisors were trapped behind her lower canine teeth, increasing their risk of damage to the enamel.

Solution:

She wore a simple removable expander brace that pushed the upper lateral incisors into the correct position within 3 months. As her adult teeth erupted, she had an excellent result and didn’t really need to have any further treatment. However, she asked (her mother) for braces to tidy up her teeth and eventually wore upper and lower fixed braces for about 12 months to complete her wonderful smile!

Case 2: Prominent upper incisors (“buck” teeth)

Queens Gate Orthodontics £ South Kensington 020 7373 0176 Queens Gate Orthodontics
“I had sticking out teeth and the word “rabbit” came out a lot and it got a bit annoying to the extent that I wanted it fixed. So, I got a Myobrace for about 2 years and people stopped talking about it. It was really quite nice because people weren’t teasing me. I feel great about my smile and not really afraid to smile in photos.”

Problem:

This young boy had prominent upper teeth, due to his lower lip becoming trapped behind his upper incisors.

Solution:

He wore a Myobrace for 12 hours a day, mostly when sleeping at night, and very quickly the prominence of his teeth resolved. Although he still has adult teeth to erupt, he may not need to wear braces as a teenager as a consequence of appropriate early treatment.

Case 3: Anterior open bite due to tongue position

Queens Gate Orthodontics £ South Kensington 020 7373 0176 Queens Gate Orthodontics

"I came to you because I had a big gap between my bottom and top jaw. I couldn’t smile properly and couldn’t talk properly, I would slur a lot."

Problem:

At 7 years old, this young girl had a gap between her upper and lower front (incisor) teeth, even though her incisors were fully erupted (grown). This gap impacted on her ability to speak and bite properly, in addition to her reluctance to smile.

Solution:

This young girl had two orthodontic consultations before coming to Queen’s Gate Orthodontics, neither of which appealed to her family. Although she was only 7 at the time of assessment, one suggestion was jaw surgery when 18; the other was waiting until she was a teenager to try fixed braces.

Suspecting that her tongue position was the cause of her problem, we offered treatment with a Myobrace®. Although these braces can be challenging to wear, this superstar quickly adapted to it being part of her routine and continued to wear a Myobrace® at night for 4 years, which meant that her adult teeth were guided into a good position and looked fantastic, with minimal help. She also moved away from London mid treatment, but her orthodontic treatment continued at a distance, conveniently and without hazard. The anterior open bite (gap between her front teeth) closed quickly, with the additional bonus that her speech improved too.

Once her adult teeth were fully erupted, she decided to complete her treatment using Invisalign® clear aligners, supported with Dental Monitoring which gave her a super result with minimal inconvenience as she rarely needed to attend Queen’s Gate Orthodontics in person.

Case 4: Upper incisors trapped in a reverse bite (anterior crossbite)

Problem:

This 8-year-old child’s upper adult incisors erupted behind three of his lower incisors, (an anterior crossbite) causing potential damage to the lower gums and chipping the enamel on his upper front teeth.

Solution:

The solution was very simple. He wore a removable expander brace for only 6 months and the crossbite was fully corrected. Although he was followed up for 3 years, he and his family were very happy with his smile and bite and he didn’t need any further orthodontic treatment. Early, interceptive, orthodontic treatment in this instance was important for this child’s dental health and development and stopped him from needing any treatment as a teenager.

Case 5: Rotated upper central incisors trapped in a reverse bite (anterior crossbite)

Problem:

At 8 1/2 only years old, this young girl’s upper central incisor teeth were erupting into a crossbite position, causing the lower incisor teeth to be mobile and proclined.

Solution:

Due to the rotated position of the teeth, a fixed brace was used carefully for a very short time, to correct the problem without harming the developing tooth roots, which were immature. Once the teeth were corrected and the gap between them closed, a fixed, wire retainer was placed to hold them in a better position as the other adult teeth erupt. The lower incisor teeth stopped being mobile as soon as the upper incisor teeth were in a better position. She will need some further treatment in the future, but the immediate problem of trauma to her lower teeth was solved.

Case 6: A unilateral crossbite in an 8-year-old child

Problem:

This 8-year-old girl had a crossbite on the left side of her teeth, in that her upper baby (deciduous) teeth were biting on the wrong surface of her lower teeth.

Solution:

She wore a series of Invisalign clear aligners over a 6-month period and the crossbite corrected nicely. Invisalign is a simple alternative to a traditional orthodontics, such as a removable expander brace, to correct problems that appear in young children. Simple correction of this problem now will help the adult teeth erupt into the correct position and may mean avoiding further orthodontic treatment later.

Case 7: Large overjet due to short lower jaw, causing lower lip trapping and proclination of the upper incisors

Problem:

This 10-year-old boy had a short lower jaw, which meant that his lower lip (which is a band of muscle) was trapped behind his upper central incisors, causing them to be tipped forwards (proclined), with a prominence (overjet) of 11mm.

Solution:

There are many ways of tackling this problem. However, the different brace types essentially have the same aim, which is to reposition the lower lip in front of the upper central incisors, where it can tip the upper incisors backwards, reduce the overjet and become a natural retainer. As he had lots of baby (deciduous) teeth that were going to fall out during his orthodontic treatment, we decided to use a Capped Frankel 2, functional appliance (brace), made from acrylic and stainless-steel wire, that minimally covered the tooth surfaces, worn for 12 hours a day, mostly whilst sleeping and only in the privacy of his home. This meant the deciduous teeth could fall out without making the brace unwearable, ensuring his orthodontic treatment could continue without interruption as his adult teeth erupted. Over a 20-month period, he diligently wore the brace at night and was rewarded with great success, as his overjet reduced from 11mm to 4mm. He may not need to have any further orthodontic treatment when his adult teeth erupt fully, as his teeth are straight, and his bite is looking good.

Case 8: Impacted upper left central incisor and crossbite onright side

Problem:

This 9-year-old boy had an extra (supernumerary) tooth in his palate, that blocked the eruption of his upper left front tooth (central incisor), causing it to become impacted. His baby (deciduous) upper incisor was retained in position in his mouth, several years after it should have fallen out. Additionally, he had a crossbite on the right side, in that his upper teeth were biting on the wrong side of his lower teeth.

Solution:

He had minor oral surgery under day case general anaesthetic to remove both the baby and supernumerary teeth, in addition to sticking (bonding)a gold chain to the impacted upper left central incisor, so that it could be guided into the correct position, by pulling it gently from a fixed brace. This phase 1 treatment took a total of 8 months. Once his adult teeth had fully erupted, he then had further orthodontic treatment with upper and lower fixed braces to correct his crossbite, which took an additional 17 months.

Case 9: Anterior crossbite (“pushing a tooth over the bite”)

Problem:

This young boy’s upper right central incisor was trapped in a reverse bite with the lower teeth (an anterior crossbite).

Solution:

He wore a simple removable brace, made from plastic and wire, full time, apart from eating, drinking, swimming and playing contact sports. Within 3 months, the problem was fully corrected.

Case 10: Early loss of a baby (deciduous) tooth, needing a space maintainer

Problem:

This young boy lost a baby molar (the lower right second deciduous molar) early and was at risk of the adult successor tooth (the lower right second premolar) becoming impacted if the space for it to erupt into was lost.

Solution:

We fitted a lingual arch to try to stop the lower adult molars slipping forward. However, some space was lost that had to be recreated using a lower fixed brace. Once space was regained, it was retained by a discreet band with welded loop and the second premolar can be seen to be erupting nicely.

Case 11: Persistent thumb sucker needing a habit breaker

Persistent thumb sucker needing a habit breaker

Problem:

This young girl struggled to stop sucking her thumb, which had significant consequence on her bite.

Solution:

We fitted a Hayrake appliance between the upper molars that acted as a physical deterrent to the thumb habit.

See more smile transformations

Queens Gate Orthodontics £ South Kensington 020 7373 0176 Queens Gate Orthodontics

"Thanks for everything you have done to my teeth and for making the visits to the orthodontist such a pleasure."

Queens Gate Orthodontics £ South Kensington 020 7373 0176 Queens Gate Orthodontics

"To Claire, Thank you for being gentle with me!
Luv from Laura.
p.s. I am very pleased with my teeth."

Queens Gate Orthodontics £ South Kensington 020 7373 0176 Queens Gate Orthodontics

"To my dentist lady. Thank you very much for helping me with my teeth. When I look in the mirror I will always remember you. I’m not afraid to smile because I’ve got nice white teeth."

Do you want your child to be assessed by a specialist orthodontist?

Book a Consultation

Contact Us

Fields with (*) are required.
Please contact us via this website or email without disclosing confidential information.

Google Rating
4.9 Based on 55+ Google reviews
75A Queens Gate, London SW7 5JT
Monday - Tuesday - Friday 9.00 am to 6.00 pm|
Wednesday - Thursday 9.30 am to 5.30 pm
Saturday - Sunday - Closed