The Ultimate Guide to Surgical Orthodontics

Surgical Orthodontics is a branch of orthodontics that works with adults and children who cannot wear braces or other appliances on their teeth. It is for those people who need dental work done but cannot wear devices. It is mainly used for patients with missing teeth, damaged teeth, misaligned teeth, and other dental problems.

An orthodontist offers this type of orthodontic treatment with experience in surgical orthodontics in Cedar Park. It effectively corrects irregular bites, usually involving permanent anterior and posterior tooth movement. In this type of treatment, the teeth are adjusted with surgical appliances such as elastics and springs. You can also move the teeth by using their forces, such as light pressure from a guidewire attached to the teeth.

When Do You Need Orthodontic Surgery?

Orthodontic surgery can be carried out to correct several dental irregularities. It is usually used as a last resort when all other forms of treatment have failed. These include:

• Damage or wear that a filling cannot repair only
• Spacing problems caused by loss of teeth
• Crowding or overlapping of teeth due to decay or broken dental braces
• Alignment of the lower jaw which affects the upper jaw alignments
• The need for cutting out extra gum tissue surrounding the teeth.

Surgery can be carried out to remove excess gum or bone, alter the angle of the jawbone, and break down overgrowths on the side of the root of a tooth so that it is ready for orthodontic treatment.

What Can You Expect from Orthodontic Surgeries?

It is best to get second opinions from orthodontic specialists before deciding on any course of action. However, you may require surgical or invasive treatment for people who have:

• Misshapen teeth
• Gaps between the front teeth
• Unevenly spaced and crooked teeth after wearing braces and retainers
• Teeth that did not meet up as expected before wearing braces and retainers
• Crooked front teeth due to misaligned jaw joints after orthodontic treatment for overbite or underbite
• Uneven or crooked bottom teeth after having braces attached to the bottom of your teeth

Surgical procedures carried out may involve:

• Bone and gum tissue cuts in the upper and lower jaws to widen the top or bottom jaw (orthognathic surgery)
• Removal of extra gum tissue around the front teeth in cases where orthodontic treatment has failed to close a gap between two teeth (diastema)
• Cutting of the bone between two teeth which have caps or crowns to realign them
• Cutting of the bone around a tooth before fitting a brace to it

Recovery After Surgery

You may experience pain for a few days after treatment. You will also need to avoid eating hard food and sticky sweets for a week. You will need to see your dentist regularly for checkups on how well your treatment progresses. After the surgery, you will be required to wear retainers or aligners to ensure that the teeth do not move back to their original position.

To summarize, surgical orthodontics is a branch of orthodontics that works with people who need orthodontic treatments but cannot wear appliances. It can help treat misshapen teeth, gaps between the front teeth, crooked teeth, and unevenly spaced teeth. After treatment, you may experience some pain. It would be best to make frequent visits to your dentist, usually every six months.