The field of orthodontics has progressed a tremendous amount in the past few decades. A prime example of this is the use of orthodontic headgear. If you graduated high school before the year 2000 you probably remember someone wearing headgear to school or perhaps you just knew someone who had to wear it. Orthodontic headgear is not something you see too much anymore, so that prompted us to want to know: Orthodontic Headgear – is that still a thing? So we asked Dr. S that exact question, here was his response:
“Headgear is a device used to move molars in the upper jaw to make space for incoming permanent teeth on patients with large overbites. It is for this reason it is only used on adolescents -- the patient needs to be growing and ideally be in the mixed dentition (i.e. some baby back teeth still present). Headgear can be used with or without braces. What an orthodontist is attempting to correct with headgear is the positional relationship of the upper teeth compared to the lower teeth to improve the patient's overbite. Headgear is not used as much these days as there are several alternative devices that do the same thing are much less noticeable which is usually what patients want.”
So in short: yes, orthodontic headgear “is” still “a thing”, but rarely used, if ever really. If you have an “overbite” and you’re concerned about the possibility of having to wear headgear, or perhaps you’ve been told (or just heard) that you will need orthodontic headgear – go see Dr. Suzuki (Kelowna Orthodontist), he will put your concerns at ease, and discuss the orthodontic options available to you and your unique situation. Every mouth is different, and every bite is different, don’t accept a “cookie cutter” orthodontic solution. Get that smile you deserve.
