About Orthodontics
Achieving a beautiful smile is often more than just straightening teeth.
Orthodontics deals with not only straightening the teeth but also aligning the bite and working towards a balanced profile. Properly fixing malocclusion (our fancy word for crowding, spacing, or protruded teeth) may require correcting the bite for necessary clearance.
This is why orthodontists are specialists who train for years after dental school regarding growth and development, tooth movement, and dentofacial orthopedics.
Ultimately, a malocclusion can affect the smile, the way a person chews, speaks, and can sometimes contribute to jaw pain. Achieving a beautiful smile and proper bite can improve esthetics, speaking, bite comfort, and confidence.
When to get Orthodontic Care
The American Association of Orthodontics recommends children as young as 7 be seen by an orthodontist. This is about a year after the first permanent teeth begin to erupt. Our goal is to observe growth and tooth eruption to monitor that they are following typical progression in order to catch any early problems that could lead to later complications.
Our philosophy at Glades Orthodontics is that early treatment if necessary should be limited in scope to addressing targeted objectives for severe issues. We prefer comprehensive treatment for patients at or slightly before all permanent teeth have erupted. Being able to observe patients growth and development for years, helps determine the right time to start treatment.
Our Treatments
For achieving that dream smile, we offer a number of treatment options. At your consult, you can discuss the best options for your case with the doctor.
Traditional Braces
We offer traditional metal braces for treatment, using modern, low-profile brackets for esthetics and comfort. These new metal brackets are less obvious and more comfortable than metal brackets of years past. Best of all, they are American made and manufactured in Wisconsin, not overseas!
Glades Aligners
Glades Aligners are clear plastic trays similar to Invisalign that have tooth movements programmed into them to move your teeth according to your treatment plan. We use our intraoral 3D scanner to take a digital scan of your teeth. We have our own 3D software that the doctor uses to custom program your tooth movements. Then, we print each programmed model of your teeth on our 3D printer and make your Glades Aligners in our office. This gives Dr. C more control over your treatment for an optimum result and means less wait time to get your trays!
Invisalign
Invisalign is to clear aligners as Kleenex is to tissues. That means, the function and end result is the same as Glades Aligners, but the process is slightly different. Since Invisalign manufactures the aligners, we take your scan and send it to them to process on the computer. The doctor receives a digital model with movements programmed and customizes modifications and changes to achieve the patient’s treatment plan. Once approved, aligners are manufactured and shipped to us where we monitor your treatment and resubmit for modifications.
Clear Braces
Clear braces are a great balance between the advantages of metal braces (control and efficiency) with the esthetics of clear aligners. Clear brackets blend in with the color of your teeth and become virtually invisible.