Does My Child Need Braces?

Braces from your pediatric dentists in El Cajon, CA, can help your child’s smile.

You want your child to enjoy a healthy, beautiful smile for life, and braces are often an important step toward that goal. Braces improve both the appearance and the health of your child’s smile, and they can boost your child’s self-confidence too.

Dr. Gary Olen and Dr. Michael Maurer of Pediatric and Adolescent Dentistry and Orthodontics, in El Cajon, CA, offer comprehensive pediatric dentistry services, including braces, to help your child’s smile. We proudly serve residents of El Cajon, CA, and San Diego, CA, and we can help your child too!

So, does your child need braces? Only your pediatric dentist/orthodontist can tell for sure, but your child may benefit from braces if you notice:

  • Large gaps between teeth or uneven spacing
  • Crowding, where there is not enough space for teeth to erupt straight
  • An overbite, where the upper teeth are too far over the lower teeth
  • An underbite, where the lower teeth jut out ahead of the upper teeth
  • A crossbite, where the teeth cross over each other
  • An open bite, where the upper and lower teeth don’t fully close together

What can braces do for your child? Consider that braces can:

  • Help your child speak more clearly
  • Benefit tooth eruption patterns
  • Lower the chance of damaging teeth due to a bad bite
  • Ensure proper jaw growth
  • Develop the right width of dental arches
  • Ensure proper lip closure
  • Maintain space for erupting teeth

There are many options for braces, including:

  • Ceramic brackets with tooth-colored wires
  • Metal brackets with metal wires
  • Lingual braces, which are bonded to the tongue side of your child's teeth

To find out more about whether your child can benefit from braces, and the orthodontic process, call Dr. Olen and Dr. Maurer of Pediatric and Adolescent Dentistry and Orthodontics, in El Cajon, CA, at (619) 440-5915 now!


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