Patient guide
Understanding Pediatric Orthodontics, Growth & Airway-Focused Care
Learn how growth and bite evaluation can guide selected early orthodontic care, when an age-seven assessment may help, and when sleep or breathing concerns need medical follow-up.
Reviewed by Scott Schmidhauser, DMD
Some developing problems are easier to identify, and sometimes easier to address, before all permanent teeth have erupted.
What do we watch as children grow?
Routine dental and orthodontic evaluation may identify:
These findings do not all have the same cause and do not automatically mean a child needs treatment.
- crowding
- crossbites
- narrow arches
- unusual tooth eruption
- limited space for developing teeth
- jaw-position concerns
- oral habits
- mouth breathing or sleep concerns that are relevant to oral function
Why is age 7 often useful?
By around age 7, enough permanent teeth are usually present to identify many developing bite, spacing, eruption, and jaw-growth concerns.
An evaluation at that age does not mean treatment has to begin.
What is early orthodontic treatment?
Selected problems may be treated while a child is still growing.
Depending on the finding, treatment might use a palatal expander or another orthodontic appliance to address available space, a crossbite, or another defined growth or bite problem.
What does “airway-focused” mean here?
At Canobie Dental, airway-focused orthodontic care means paying attention to breathing and sleep-related concerns when they are relevant to dental and jaw development.
Dentistry can identify oral findings and ask appropriate screening questions. It does not mean that every orthodontic problem is caused by an airway problem or that orthodontic treatment cures a sleep disorder.
Will early treatment prevent future orthodontics?
Not necessarily.
Children continue to grow and permanent teeth continue to erupt. Early treatment can address a specific problem at a useful stage of development, but additional orthodontic treatment may still be needed later.
A dental home during growth
Regular dental visits allow tooth eruption, bite, oral health, and orthodontic development to be followed together over time.
Next step
Plan a visit to our Newport office
Canobie Dental is accepting new patients. View appointment information or call with questions.