Common Orthodontic Issues

Crowding of the teeth

Close-up view of upper and lower teeth showing orthodontic treatment progress and dental alignment.
Before
Close-up of white dental veneers or crowns on upper front teeth showing professional cosmetic dentistry results.
After
Patient started treatment at age 11 and wore braces for 26 months. He loves his new smile.

Open bite - Front teeth don't touch

Close-up of upper and lower teeth showing orthodontic treatment results with proper alignment and bite.
Before
Close-up of aligned upper and lower teeth showing successful orthodontic treatment results.
After
Patient sucked her thumb as a young child. She started treatment at age 13. She had braces and a special appliance — called a crib — to retrain the tongue, for 28 months. Now she can bite the lettuce out of a sandwich.

Deep overbite - Lower front teeth bite into palate

Close-up view of upper front teeth showing dental alignment and gum health in clinical setting.
Before
Close-up of upper front teeth showing orthodontic treatment progress with visible brackets and wires on dental model.
After
This adult patient, age 25, required braces and jaw surgery to correct his severe overbite, with treatment taking two years. His problem could have been corrected without surgery if he had been treated before he was a teenager.

Missing lateral incisors

Close-up intraoral view of child's upper teeth showing mixed dentition with spacing and malocclusion.
Before
Close-up view of patient's teeth showing orthodontic treatment progress with visible braces and alignment corrections.
After
This patient's lateral incisors were congenitally missing. She had braces for 20 months to move the teeth into their correct positions, then the missing teeth were replaced with bonded "Maryland" bridges.

Underbite - Lower front teeth in front of upper teeth

Close-up of upper front teeth showing white spots and discoloration on tooth enamel surface.
Before
Close-up of patient's upper teeth showing orthodontic treatment results with proper alignment and spacing.
After
Patient's underbite was causing her jaw joint discomfort and excessive wear patterns on her teeth. After about 30 months of treatment starting at age 32, she now finds smiling and chewing much easier.

Spacing of teeth

Close-up of upper front teeth showing orthodontic treatment with brackets and wires on dental model.
Before
Close-up of upper and lower teeth showing dental alignment and bite relationship during orthodontic treatment.
After
Patient was bothered by the spaces between his teeth. Braces closed the spaces and gave him an ideal bite in 24 months. Special glued-in retainers help keep the spaces closed.

Overjet - Protruding front teeth

Close-up of healthy front teeth and gums showing a bright smile with proper dental alignment.
Before
Close-up of upper and lower teeth showing orthodontic alignment and whitening results.
After
At age ten, patient had a big overjet with the top teeth protruding beyond the bottom. She had two phases of treatment. The first helped her jaws to grow more harmoniously and the second aligned her teeth and bite. At age 13, she was proudly displaying her new smile.

Non-braces treatment

Close-up intraoral view showing lower teeth and gums during orthodontic examination or treatment documentation.
Before
Intraoral view of lower teeth and gums showing orthodontic treatment progress
After
Sometimes braces are not needed to get noticeable improvements in tooth alignment. This patient was first seen at age seven for crowding of the lower permanent teeth. A procedure was performed to reduce the width of the adjacent baby teeth and the permanent incisors aligned on their own in nine months.

Phase-One

Child's upper teeth showing gaps and misalignment requiring orthodontic treatment.
Before
Close-up of teeth showing orthodontic treatment progress with braces and brackets on upper teeth.
After
Patient's parents were concerned about both aesthetics and the health of the erupting permanent teeth when they brought him to the orthodontist at age eight. The lower front teeth were crowded and touching the palate, and the upper front teeth were extremely displaced from their normal positions. After 12 months of Phase-One treatment with an expander and partial braces, patient's appearance and dental function were vastly improved.