General Information

Orthodontics is the specialty of dentistry focused on the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of problems in alignment of the teeth and jaws.

Orthodontics can improve a person’s self esteem as the teeth, jaws and lips become properly aligned. Alleviating or preventing physical health problems is just as important.

Without treatment orthodontic problems may lead to tooth decay, gum disease bone shrinkage. A “bad bite”can contribute to speech impairments, tooth loss, chipped teeth and other dental injuries.

Teeth can be moved and a smile can be improved at any age. However, we believe in treating at the right time to achieve the best results with the least amount of time and expense.

It is a common misconception that any form of orthodontic treatment should only begin once all of the adult teeth have emerged into the mouth. The American and Australian Association of Orthodontists recommends that a child should see an orthodontist for a checkup around the age of seven. Usually, at this age, the back first adult molars and front adult incisor teeth are emerging into the mouth.

However, some children may need to be seen earlier if the school dental therapist or a family dentist have found a problem.

If you are concerned about the position of your child’s teeth at an age earlier then seven please do not hesitate to contact us for a consultation for your piece of mind. You do not need a referral from a health professional to request a consultation.

An early orthodontic consultation allows for us to:

• anticipate if any treatment may be required in the future and the best time to carry out the treatment.

• determine if any early interceptive treatment is required.

Possible Benefits of interceptive treatment:

• improving self esteem especially if there is an element of teasing at school.

• reducing the risk of trauma to protruding teeth.

• creating room for crowded adult teeth that have not yet emerged into the mouth.

• maintaining space in the mouth for the adult teeth especially if baby teeth have been removed earlier then anticipated.

• possibly reducing the need for tooth removal in the future

• reducing future treatment time with braces

• eliminating thumb and finger sucking habits

• improving facial balance by influencing the growth of the upper and lower jaws.

• preventing the top and bottom adult teeth from contacting each other in a way that they might cause permanent tooth wear or gum damage.

Not every child requires early treatment.

If no early treatment is indicated we will carefully monitor your child’s growth and development at regular intervals and recommend the best time to begin treatment.

We will inform you if any aspect of the treatment needs to be urgently carried out or if it is for cosmetic reasons.

The first step to growing a great grin begins with requesting an initial consultation and completing a new patient registration and medical history form.  These forms can be completed online or at our practice.

Request a consultation

This first visit will give you the opportunuity to meet our orthodontic team and decide if would like to become part of our family.

Even though no treatment is carried out at the first visit some of our younger patients who have never been to the orthodontist may be stressed and quite nervous  prior to the visit.  Therefore the primary goal for us at our practice before  we discuss orthodontics is to focus on reducing any of these fears and developing a fun and positive relationship with our patients.

After any fears or nervousness have been resolved and settled We will listen carefully to any concerns you have and what you would like to achieve with orthodontic treatment. We encourage you to ask as many questions as you like.  This is then followed by a  thorough examination of the the teeth, jaws and face to determine your orthodontic needs.

There are four essential questions that we want to cover during the first visit:

1) is there an orthodontic problem, and if so , when is the best time to correct it.

2) what options are there to correct the problem

3) how long will the treatment take.

4) how much will the treatment cost.

Request a consultation

We do not want you to feel rushed into making any treatment decisions at the the first visit. A family huddle at home  is sometimes needed to process the information at this visit so that you can make a collective decision.

Please contact us if you have any further questions about your first visit or if you are ready to begin treatment.

The goals of the first visit are to:

• focus on developing a fun and positive relationship with our patients.
• listen to all of your concerns and answer any questions you may have.
• determine what you would like to achieve with orthodontic treatment.
• perform a thorough orthodontic examination which includes the teeth, jaws and the face. This may involve taking an X-ray.

Since we recommmend that all children be screened for orthodontic treatment around the age of seven years old, some young patients may not require treatment or are not ready to begin any orthodontic treatment.  In these cases patients will be reviewed at regular intervals to monitor the movement of the adult teeth as well as the growth and  development of the jaws and face.  Regular visits to the orthodontist will allow us to choose the optimal time to offer treatment and provides a greater opportunity for an effective treatment outcome.

No treatment is the same and therefore it is difficult to give an estimate.  Cost of treatment varies on the severity of the problem and treatment required. A full treatment cost schedule will be provided to you at a treatment plan discussion.  

You can see more information about our pricing here.

Average orthodontic treatment can take 12-24 months. Treatment time can vary depending on the complexity of the case, the age and the co-operation of the patient. Harder cases take longer than simple cases.

Failed and cancelled appointments or repeated breakages of braces will extend treatment time.

It’s painless to have braces placed. Tooth discomfort usually occurs an hour after placement of the appliance. We recommend to take pain relief for a few days as achiness can last for a couple of days up to about a week depending on pain threshold. When braces are regularly adjusted this can make the teeth feel tender for a few days.

Yes, but we highly recommend wearing a remold-able mouth guard that is brought from a pharmacy or Rebel Sports.  The remold is recommended as your teeth will move during your treatment. Once treatment is finished then we can make you a custom made mouth guard.

No, we prefer to treat without the removal of teeth but after a physical exam and treatment discussion the Orthodontist will be able to give you the best advice moving forward with treatment.

Ginger nut biscuits, nut bars, chewing on ice, toffees, hubba bubba, k bars and some hard foods like apples and carrots can be eaten with care but cut up first.

Yes, it’s important you have a regular dental check up with your regular family dentist throughout orthodontic treatment so that your teeth can be checked for decay.