What is two-phase treatment?
Two-phase orthodontic treatment is treatment for a child that takes place at seaprate times. The first phase takes place when the child still has some or most of their baby teeth, and the second phase takes place after they have all of their adult teeth. Because this treatment focuses on structural changes in the bones, as well as tooth alignment, it tends to have the greatest opportunity for success.
Is it okay to put off treatment until my child is older?
By having your child treated early, they have the advantage of undergoing treatment before their jaw bones have hardened. This enables Dr. Sonneborn and his staff to set a treatment schedule that will have the greatest possible results for your child. While treatment after the bones have hardened still has measurable success, the results will not be as good as they could have been had treatment started earlier.
Phase One
There are three primary goals of the first phase of your child’s treatment. Dr. Sonneborn and his staff have the goals of:
- Preventing orthodontic problems that have not yet started to develop
- Intercepting the problems that have already started to develop
- Guiding the growth of jaw bones to ensure your child is ready for phase two
Phase Two
There are also three primary goals of the second phase of your child’s treatment. Dr. Sonneborn and his staff have these goals during that phase:
- A proper alignment and relationship between teeth and jaws, so they work properly together
- Correct alignment of the teeth to give your child a beautiful smile
- Positioning of the teeth and jaws that were prepared for in phase one for an attractive face and profile
If you have any questions about our services, please contact us today at (517) 787-9833 (Jackson) or (269) 979-9329 (Battle Creek).