Changing Bites During Orthodontic Treatment

During the course of orthodontic treatment, your teeth and gums are going to undergo some massive changes, indeed that is the whole purpose of this branch of medicine. But what you may expect to happen and how that plays out in your day to day life may be very different, and you may be surprised to find where your teeth are. Indeed, during the treatment, your teeth may move to places where they do not help biting or chewing food, but quite opposite, really. There is no need to worry! Your bite will change several times before the end of treatment, when a better bite will finally be yours.

Gaps

The change that most frequently frightens patients is when gaps appear between teeth that did not previously have them. These troublesome gaps can be quite annoying and can result in a new and exciting speech impediment, or as trouble biting into or chewing food. These gaps are also annoying because you have to change your at home oral care routine, you may need to floss in places where you did not need to floss before, and there may be quite a bit of food detritus stuck in these new places, especially when they just form and you may not know of their existence. However, at the end of a successful orthodontic treatment, these should clear up.

Rotation

You may find that you need to have a tooth rotated to a certain angle so that it will fit well with the rest of your teeth and properly close your bite. This is of course a process, and in the meantime there may some very awkward intermediary positions in which the tooth sticks out more or is turned at an angle that is strange. Not to worry, having teeth rotated is a routine orthodontic procedure, and the tooth will be sorted all in due time.

How Much Is Too Much?

If teeth are touching or are being jammed on to each other, there may be a problem. If the gaps or rotating are causing pain or discomfort, mention it to your orthodontist. Every patient is different, and something that can work in one patient may be too much or too difficult for another one. As you are the only one who feels what is going on, communication with your dentist is extremely important.

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