Orthodontic treatment

A beautiful smile with white teeth

Orthodontic treatment can help correct misaligned, crowded or protrusive teeth into proper alignment.
Our orthodontic specialist will carefully analyze your orthodontic problem, decide which type of orthodontic treatment is best for you, and provide a high quality dental care that meets your needs.

Wire orthodontic treatment

Wire orthodontic treatment, the most well known standard treatment of orthodontic patients, is a method in which wire is inserted into the orthodontic brackets.
The brackets can be made from stainless steel, clear plastic, or ceramic material on the front surface of teeth.

Aesthetic Orthodontic Brackets (Clear Brackets, Ceramic Brackets): Aesthetic orthodontic brackets are a great alternative for patients who want a more esthetic alternative to metal brackets, such as clear plastic brackets and ceramic brackets which blend in with teeth and are harder to see. However, they have some disadvantages: aesthetic braces still use visible wires and are slightly more expensive than metal braces.

Lingual Braces (Inside Braces)

Lingual braces are inserted on the inside of a patient’s mouth instead of outside so that they become invisible.
Though completely invisible, lingual braces have some disadvantages: it requires a longer time to adjust, may cause discomfort, and cost more than traditional braces.

Advantages of Lingual Braces: The advantages of lingual braces is the fact that they are hidden behind your teeth so that no one can tell you are wearing braces at all.

Disadvantage of Lingual Braces: It may cause discomfort in some patients because the lingual appliance is located behind the teeth.

Orthodontic Mini Implants

Although a few dental offices provide orthodontic mini implants, it requires shorter treatment time and excellent results tend to be achieved.
Orthodontic mini implants are used as anchors so that it allows the orthodontist to achieve ideal movement, to shorten treatment time, and attain positive results.
Orthodontic mini implants may be used in lingual braces.

Advantages of Orthodontic Mini Implant

Shorter treatment time
(treatment time may be about half the time of conventional braces depending on individual cases.)
Good result
(Orthodontic mini implants are used as anchors so that it allows the orthodontist to achieve ideal tooth movement.)

Disadvantages of Orthodontic Mini Implant

Surgery is required.
(The expected time of surgery is about 45minutes.)

Surgical Orthodontics

Orthodontic surgery, which involves cutting the jaw bone and repositioning it to a desired alignment, may be performed if satisfactory results cannot be attained by normal braces.
Although a surgical orthodontic procedure is a full scale operation, significant therapeutic effect can be obtained and it may be covered by insurance.

Advantage of Surgical Orthodontics

Surgical orthodontics might be a solution in difficult cases where normal braces cannot be used.
Higher therapeutic effect can be expected with surgical orthodontics than normal braces.
Overall treatment time might be shorter.
The procedure may be covered by insurance.

Disadvantage of Surgical Orthodontics

Need a quite full-scale operation
(General anesthesia is required and 2 to 3 weeks of hospitalization is needed in most cases)
There is possibility of getting paralysis and having a disfigured nose after surgery.

Pediatric Orthodontics

Pediatric orthodontics is a orthodontic treatment for young children.　Although orthodontic treatment may be done at any age, orthodontic treatment at a young age may ensure more ideal outcome since jaw bones are still forming. This allows for easy control of both bone growth and tooth movement by orthodontist.

When is the best time for children to start orthodontic treatment?: Early orthodontic treatment is most effective when started while the jaw bones are growing and developing usually between the ages of 6 to 14 years of age.
Early treatment of Class III Malocclusion can be started from as early as 3 years of age.
Early orthodontic treatment allows dentists to control the balance between upper/lower jaws size and teeth/jaw size.

Advantage of Early Orthodontic Treatment

Full orthodontic treatment at a later age can possibly be avoided.
Jaw growth can be controlled to some degree so that more favorable results are likely to be obtained.
Less chance exist of extracting permanent teeth in future orthodontic treatment.