What Is Early Childhood Preventive Care?

The ideal time to consider an orthodontic consultation for your child occurs when his or her permanent front teeth and first molars are coming in. This usually occurs between the ages of 5 and 7 years old. By this time, crossbites, crowding, and other problems can be evaluated. With early treatment, Dr. Martin can guide the growth of the jaw and incoming permanent teeth.

Early preventative treatment can also regulate the width of the upper and lower dental arches, gain space for permanent teeth, avoid the need for extractions of permanent teeth, reduce the likelihood of impactions, correct thumb-sucking, and eliminate abnormal swallowing or speech problems. In other words, early treatment can simplify and/or reduce later treatment.

Dr. Martin's nephews, Jack and Reed