What is orthodontics? This is still a big question mark today. Even today in digital era of orthodontics people are unaware about the specialization and the problems treated by the orthodontist.
Orthodontics is a specialised branch of dentistry.
Art of creating attractive smile curve.
It deals with straightening and alignment of teeth, proclination, correction of habits like thumb sucking, lip biting, mouth breathing and malocclusion caused by these habits by various tongue and lip exercises.
It deals with space management problems like delayed exfoliation of teeth, impacted teeth, jaw correction in growing children like smaller mandible, larger mandible and problems related to jaw coordination using myofunctional appliances and extra-oral appliances, jaw correction by surgery in adults.
Even orthodontics helps in correction of TMJ problems, parafunctional habits like clenching, snoring, bruxism, obstructive sleep apnoea.
Today to pace with aesthetic problems even invisible braces, lingual braces, clear aligners have been introduced.
Orthodontics is just not related to a particular age group. From infants with cleft lip and palate, children with habits and jaw anomalies, adolescents with smile concerned to adults with endodontic, periodontal, prosthodontic problems can be treated with orthodontics.
What marks the need of orthodontics is just the awareness and concern to be treated by a specialist called ORTHODONTIST. So its time and need of the day to get treated by a orthodontist.