How Long Do Braces Take To Fix Overbite

An overbite can not only damage someone'due south self-esteem and confidence, but it besides damages the teeth, gums, and jaw. If left untreated, it can pb to loss of teeth and other irreparable problems. In order to avoid such issues, you should seek an orthodontist'southward aid for an overbite at the outset sign of it.

To fix an overbite, treatments like braces, surgery and extraction extraction, or the utilize of elastics and springs can all be viable options. Braces can fix an overbite in viii-24 months, depending upon the severity of the overbite. Early treatment has college chances of achieving long-term success.

Before learning about the treatment options for an overbite, you should know the unlike types and causes of an overbite. This way, you tin can identify an overbite at its earliest symptoms and get proper treatment from an orthodontist. So, let's learn everything about fixing an overbite!

What Is an Overbite?

Beautiful young woman with brackets on teeth

An overbite is a blazon of malocclusion in which the acme front teeth overlap the bottom forepart teeth more than normal. In this case, there's a fair amount of distance between the pinnacle and lesser teeth. The teeth are misaligned from their normal position causing issues like gum diseases and tooth disuse.

An overbite can be skeletal or dental, pregnant it can be because of jawbone irregularity or disrupted dental development. An overbite in some people can exist a combination of both.

If the height front teeth overlap the lesser ones more than than two-3 mm, it is a considerable overbite and requires proper treatment.

In severe cases, the lower teeth damage the palate behind the upper teeth. This can pb to loss of upper teeth.

Some people confuse an overbite with an overjet. However, these two terms are different. In an overjet, a horizontal gap is present between the top and bottom teeth. People with considerable overjet are well-nigh likely to have an overbite as well.

Overbite Causes

There are multiple reasons for an overbite. Information technology tin can happen because of genetics or considering of unhealthy habits. Permit's take a closer look at some causes of an overbite.

Genetics

Some people take a malformed jaw bone that causes the teeth to develop irregularly. If someone'due south jaw is as well big or too small, it tin can crusade crowding or spacing between teeth, leading to an overbite.

For some people, uneven jaw bone development runs in the family. You can't exercise anything to prevent an overbite if it'southward genetic. However, taking treatment on time can prevent problems like tooth loss.

Childhood Habits

Children sucking their thumb or a pacifier consistently past the age of 3 can lead to an overbite. Such habits button the tongue to the dorsum of the height teeth, causing misaligned teeth. There'due south repetitive pressure on the roof of the oral fissure, teeth, and jaw. Sucking on a bottle can have the same effects also.

Teeth Grinding (Bruxism)

Teeth grinding and clenching (bruxism) is another cause of an overbite. Putting also much force on the teeth overtime can wear abroad and flatten the forepart teeth, which can worsen the degree of overbite. If these problems remain unchecked, it tin can worsen the situation, eventually leading to tooth loss.

Use a dental guard while sleeping at dark to prevent teeth grinding. Consider the Oral-B Dark Dental Guard (on Amazon).

Smash Biting

Teenagers and adults can develop an overbite if they bite their nails frequently. Nail-biting puts pressure on the teeth, only they aren't designed to bear this much stress or seize with teeth down on difficult things like nails. With time, the stress becomes unendurable for the teeth, causing them to habiliment downwards and flatten.

Tin Braces Prepare an Overbite?

Braces are one of the most effective treatment options for an overbite. They can set up most overbite-related problems.

Before starting the handling, information technology's important to assess the human relationship between your teeth and jaw. This process involves taking an X-ray of your mouth. After that, your orthodontist will propose the best handling option and type of braces for your problem.

Both skeletal and dental overbite tin be stock-still using braces. The wires straighten the teeth in the first phase. To shift the jaw to its normal position, elastics are preferred in the second phase.

Elastics are made of small-scale safety bands that are attached to the brackets. They are removable, and you are supposed to accept them out while eating, drinking, and brushing your teeth.

Elastics put a lot of force per unit area on the teeth and jaw, which leads to the treatment of an overbite. Nevertheless, if you lot wear elastics on and off, y'all can worsen your overbite instead of curing it.

There are many types of braces in addition to the traditional metal braces. Ceramic braces with articulate brackets are better to apply if y'all experience self-witting near braces. Nearly adults prefer ceramic braces at present because of their invisibility.

If the overbite is due to excessive jaw issues or farthermost crowding, the orthodontist might suggest a molar removal or surgery for treating an overbite.

What Type of Braces Practice Yous Need for an Overbite?

Most of the time, traditional braces are the best for an overbite. But other things are as well required to set an overbite.

Braces and Elastics

If the overbite is severe, the use of elastics becomes of import so that there's enough pressure on the teeth and the jaw.

The process involves two stages: i for the placement of the metal curvation and the 2nd for putting on the elastics.

Your orthodontist volition decide how to position the elastics on your teeth according to your misalignment.

Braces and "Herbst" Appliances

Herbst appliances shift the lower jaw frontward to ready a skeletal overbite. Equally the jaw stays in a forward position, the teeth start to move frontwards also. All the same, this treatment is for young children whose jawbones accept not properly developed yet. For older patients, this treatment won't work.

When the Herbst appliance is removed, after near a year, braces are placed on the teeth for a perfectly aligned smile.

Palate Expander

A "palatal expander" or "palate expander" widens the upper jaw and makes more space for the teeth. Information technology is a treatment for crowding of teeth causing an overbite. This handling is used before the 2 basic in the upper jaw are fused, which occurs after puberty.

Forsus Springs

Teenagers (older ones) and adults can't utilize palatal expanders or Herbst appliances for fixing their overbite. Therefore, a device chosen forsus springs is used for their handling.

It's a spring-shaped tool that is used later braces for about a year. It works similar to elastics, but the chances of fixing the overbite are higher with forsus springs. It puts force per unit area on the bottom teeth, pushing them forward, while pushing the upper teeth backward.

Tooth Extraction

In astringent overbite cases, braces alone tin can't align the teeth. Removal of front end teeth becomes necessary. Your dentist decides which teeth have to go. Later on that, the remaining teeth are shifted to get rid of any space between the teeth. Appliances similar braces and aligners are used for the shifting.

Surgery

For skeletal overbite, jaw surgery is a great choice. It is washed subsequently keeping braces for some fourth dimension. In some cases, the braces might have to stay on even afterwards the jaw surgery. Information technology can take up to 1-2 years to fix an overbite this way.

How Long Does Information technology Accept to Set an Overbite With Braces?

The time to prepare an overbite with braces isn't stock-still. It depends upon factors like:

Overcrowding of teeth
Type of overbite
The severity of the overbite
Jaw problems
Age of the patient
Treatment selection
Type of braces

When someone has an overbite, information technology'due south usually accompanied past other bug like crowding and misaligned jaws. Therefore, more than one treatment is ordinarily used to fix an overbite. Sometimes, just braces and elastics are enough while at other times, the patient may require jaw surgery followed by braces.

In general, it can have anywhere from eight months to 2 years to fix an overbite using different treatments including braces. Elastics are normally kept on for 8-9 months.

The typical healing fourth dimension for jaw surgery is approximately 12 weeks. Jaw surgery is ordinarily performed after the patient has had braces for about 12-14 months.

In brusk, the time to fix an overbite with braces and other treatments isn't stock-still. It varies from person to person depending upon their condition. Your orthodontist tin guide you meliorate in this regard later deciding on the right treatment for y'all. Fifty-fifty then, the healing time tin change depending upon how your teeth react to the treatment.

What Happens if You lot Don't Care for an Overbite?

An overbite is a serious trouble that can lead to major bug if left untreated. You should go to a dentist at the first sign of an overbite to salve yourself from problems like tooth decay and jaw pain. Here are some of the bug that can result from an overbite.

Gum Damage

If an overbite is left untreated, it can lead to a more than-severe overbite, covering the whole bottom teeth. This tin can put a lot of unbearable force per unit area and trauma on the gums and surrounding tissues.

In the long run, gum damage will harm your teeth and cause severe pain besides.

Headaches and Earaches

When there is a misalignment of the jaw in an overbite, the muscles and joints continued to it tin can be affected. These are the ones near your ear and head. This tin pb to severe pain and migraines.

Sleep Apnea

While sleeping, an overbite can cause blockage of the airway, leading to sleep apnea. In this status, animate becomes hard and snoring increases. In sleep apnea, the patients get disturbed sleep, causing a tiring and lazy day in the morn. Other symptoms of slumber apnea include oxygen deprivation in the encephalon and gasping for air.

Cavities and Molar Loss

Having an overbite causes gum damage, which tin can lead to cavities. If the cavities increase, the patients may lose their teeth. The teeth tin can wear down quite rapidly. Damage to the tissues of the teeth is also expected from an overbite. This impairment is irreversible in some cases.

Final Thoughts

Now that you know how braces and other treatments tin fix an overbite, you tin confidently visit an orthodontist. Having an overbite tin bear upon many other parts of your rima oris and crusade irreversible damage. Therefore, you should never ignore it.