You may have heard crowded teeth referred to as dental crowding or overcrowding. This happens when your mouth does not have enough space for your teeth to grown in properly. This is a type of malocclusion resulting in overlapping and crooked teeth. Depending on the number of teeth in your mouth and the size of your jaw, Bruce Vafa DDS. may diagnose your overcrowding as severe, moderate or mild.
Severe Crowding:
Severe crowding is when the majority of anterior teeth on your lower or upper jaw overlap.
Moderate Crowding:
Moderate crowding is when two or three of your anterior teeth are overlapping in your lower or upper jaw.
Mild Crowding:
Mild crowding occurs when one of the anterior teeth in your lower or upper jaw is rotated slightly.
Causes of Crowded Teeth
There are many different factors capable of causing crowded teeth including:
- If your jaw is smaller than your teeth or they do not fit properly with a tendency to twist or overlap.
- If you lost a permanent tooth at an early age, the empty space can be filled when your other teeth move.
- You were born with a small jaw resulting in dental crowding.
- If you retained your baby teeth for too long, your permanent teeth can erupt incorrectly. Your permanent teeth may be unable to erupt if your teeth have become loose but the gums have tightened back up. Over-retained baby teeth are usually extracted by your Los Angeles holistic dentist to ensure permanent teeth can erupt correctly and to help prevent crowded teeth.
Fixing Crowded Teeth
Your West Hollywood dentist will determine the best treatment for your needs based on your age and if your crowding is severe, moderate or mild. The following options are available to fix your crowded teeth.
Braces
The most common treatment option for overcrowding is dental braces. Braces are effective for function, aesthetics, realigning your jaw and correcting your smile. There are different options you can choose from including lingual braces, clear braces and traditional metal braces. Once you receive your braces, you will visit your dentist once every month or every two months until they have been removed. You will need to wear them for 18 to 36 months.
Invisalign
Invisalign is clear aligners used as an orthodontic treatment for the correction of different types of misalignment and crowded teeth. The aligners are nearly invisible and a good option for braces at about the same cost. During your treatment, you receive sets of removable aligners you will need to replace twice each month. You will wear your aligners for roughly 22 hours every day for about 20 weeks. This will correct even a mild misalignment.
Veneers
If you are an adult with moderate teeth crowding, dental veneers are a viable treatment. A veneer is a customized, shell made from tooth-colored material. Your appearance is improved by fitting veneers over the front of your teeth. Bruce Vafa DDS. bonds the shells directly to your teeth so the size, shape, color, function and length can be changed. The cost of veneers is more expensive than clear aligners or braces but you will not need to visit the office as much.
Retainers
Both removable and fixed retainers provide the pressure necessary to move your slightly crowded teeth. Retainers do not have the ability to straighten your teeth like clear aligners and braces. For this reason, we do not recommend retainers to fix either severe or moderate tooth crowding.
Dentofacial Orthopedics
If your teeth crowding is severe, dentofacial orthopedics may be necessary. This device guides your bone growth while correctly aligning your teeth. The most common orthopedics include palatal expanders and headgear.