Dr Steffen Decker explains why prevention is better than cure for children’s teeth

Prevention and intervention are better than cure when it comes to children’s teeth, says Dr Steffen Decker. By treating children from the age of four upwards, often with simple devices, many tooth alignment problems that are traditionally treated with extensive brace treatment at a later age can be reduced and, in most cases, avoided altogether. Dr Steffen, the owner of The Orthodontic Specialist Practice in Old Amersham, is a Specialist Orthodontist with a Masters in Lingual Orthodontics and is program director of an MSC in Dento-Facial Orthodontics. He is passionate about his work and has very strong opinions on why it’s so important to catch dental issues in children early. Here he explains why...

common in Switzerland, Scandinavia, Australia, Europe, and USA.

The American Orthodontic society recommends screening from the age of seven to intercept issues so we can help children to grow naturally. The whole concept behind early interceptive treatment is ‘growth’. Growth happens much before the age of 12 especially in the maxilla (upper arch). With orthodontic adjustments, such as braces, we can align a child’s bite and create a good foundation for teeth to grow and erupt naturally. I would urge parents to take their children to a specialist orthodontist at around six or seven years old to ascertain if their jaw and bite is aligned or even earlier if any issues are evident.

What is a typical treatment you provide for children?

Everything is changing in their life, and it is wonderful to be a part of this and it is just amazing what we can achieve to improve their smile and their confidence. For me it is also important to be respected in my specialised area. This is why I also enjoy teaching. I love sharing my expertise with my peers, to help them treat difficult malocclusion cases. It is extremely satisfying.

What would you say to parents reading this?

I can’t stress enough how important it is to have your children checked at an early age to see if any malocclusion is evident. It is so important to catch this at a young age as early intervention can make a huge impact on your child and how they grow in a natural way to have a beautiful smile.

Is there an ideal age for a child’s first consultation and why?

Orthodontics is for the treatment of malocclusion which can be crowding, spacing, overbite, underbite, crossbite, open bite and poor relationship between upper and lower jaw. Bad alignment of the jaw can result in the teeth growing incorrectly (crooked, overcrowded etc). It's hereditary and is the result of size differences between the upper and lower jaw, or between the jaw and the teeth. Malocclusion literally means ‘bad bite’. It can also be linked to habits such as thumb sucking and breathing such as mouth breathing.

Early detection of malocclusion will decrease the length and severity of the treatment needed. Quite simply the earlier you treat malocclusion, the better the outcome.

In the UK the NHS will fund orthodontic procedures on children aged 12 to 18 and only then in certain cases. By the age of 12 a problem can have reached a much more serious stage and result in the necessity for a much more prolonged programme of treatment.

In Germany, for example, we can treat children at any age if malocclusion is evident. This early treatment is also very

Invisalign First is for early interventive, interceptive treatment of very young children. These braces are comfortable and are not noticeable when a child smiles so children are quite happy to have them and are even happier when they see the quick results from them.

Invisalign First is mainly to encourage growth in the correct way so that teeth erupt straight. They really are the perfect solution.

Invisalign Teen would be offered to older children. Again these are very discreet, making them perfect for image conscious teenagers, and can be monitored without regular monthly visits. Lingual braces are also an option for teenagers, they are a type of invisible brace which are fixed to the back, or lingual side, of the teeth, closer to the tongue.

What is your philosophy?

For me it is important that my patients feel totally comfortable here. We try to do everything for them to make them smile.

Between the ages of seven and 15 there are such beautiful changes taking place in children.

I have three young children and they each have Invisalign to help their growth and create beautiful smiles so it is not something they ever have to be self conscious of. They are all growing now with strong, functional and perfectly straight teeth.

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