As part of your orthodontic treatment plan, your orthodontist may recommend surgery. This can range from simple things such as having your wisdom teeth removed through to having jaw surgery should you have a large jaw discrepancy that is not able to be corrected with braces alone.
If this is the case, your orthodontist will work hand in hand with an oral surgeon who will perform the surgical aspects of your treatment. The first step with any combined orthodontic and surgical treatment plan is meeting with your oral surgeon. They will explain in some detail what your treatment with them will involve and will make sure you are comfortable with the process. Some common issues an oral surgeon may help your orthodontist address include:
Impacted teeth
What is an impacted tooth? An impacted tooth is a tooth that does not erupt due to an underlying issue with it’s position. Impacted teeth can occur when there is not enough room for the tooth to erupt and it becomes ‘stuck’ up in the gum or if the tooth erupts at the incorrect angle and becomes stuck against another tooth.
Your orthodontist may suspect one of your teeth are impacted if you have a baby tooth that is still present although it should have been lost or if there is a lack of eruption of an adult tooth in the expected time frame.
Once this is noted, your orthodontist will typically refer you for x-rays to check the position of the tooth. If an impaction is confirmed on your x-ray and isn’t able to be corrected by simply making room for the tooth to come down naturally, your orthodontist may suggest you see an oral surgeon to help address the impaction.
The oral surgeon will perform an exposure on the impacted tooth, which entails making a small access point to bond a bracket onto the tooth under the gum. From there, you will be fitted with braces on the teeth to help bring the impacted tooth down into the dental arch.
You can read more about impacted teeth in the Orthodontics Australia article here:https://orthodonticsaustralia.org.au/impacted-tooth/ or in in our own blog article here: Impacted teeth and orthodontics | Norwest Orthodontics
Wisdom teeth
As part of your orthodontic treatment, it may be suggested that your wisdom teeth are removed. This may be to create additional room to straighten your teeth, or because your wisdom teeth are impacted/poorly positioned and will cause issues in the future.
Impacted wisdom teeth are quite common and are easily addressed by your oral surgeon. If left in position, impacted wisdom teeth can cause issues such as food impaction, decay, infection and damage to the surrounding teeth if they are pushing on the roots or crowns of the teeth around them.
If you have orthodontic treatment completed before your wisdom teeth are fully formed or erupted, your general dentist can continue to monitor these post orthodontic treatment to advise if removal will be necessary later down the track.
Jaw surgery
If you have a very narrow top jaw, a large overbite, underbite or openbite or a facial asymmetry, surgery may be required in addition to fixed braces on your teeth to correct your jaw discrepancy. Typically, if a patient is young, an orthodontist can do early intervention treatment with functional appliances to correct these bite issues without any surgery being required.
If these issues are left to be addressed until the patient is a late teen or adult,there will not be enough growth remaining for the orthodontist to harness with a plate and hence this correction will need to be done surgically. An orthodontist may also recommend surgery later down the track for a young patient with a bite discrepancy who has significant growing left to do that will continue to worsen their bite over time.
Oral surgery may seem daunting, however it is quite commonly prescribed. Should you require oral surgery as part of your orthodontic treatment, Dr Shimanto will ensure that he explains what is required and will refer you to an appropriately qualified and skilled oral surgeon that he will work in conjuction with.
Our treatment coordinators will also be with you throughout your treatment process to assist with sending your referrals, organising your appointments and coordinating your orthodontic appliance fittings.
If you have been considering orthodontic treatment, Dr Shimanto can help you understand the options available to you. You can request a call back from one of our friendly team members here.
