There are a couple of ways to correct overbites without surgery. Braces can help by moving teeth to bring them back in line. Clear aligners like Invisalign can also do this. They can also straighten teeth, which may be the cause of the overbite. If not, there are other orthodontic appliances that can be used like rubber bands or coils to move the jaws into a better alignment. Depending on how significant your overbite is, you can expect to wear braces or aligners for about six months up to two years.
How does overbite correction work with braces?
Overbite correction can happen with braces or Invisalign clear aligners. It helps to know a little bit about what causes overbites and what overbites are. Let’s take a moment to learn a little bit more about this condition.
So what causes overbites? There are several causes but the most common ones are:
- Genetics
- Thumb sucking
- Overuse of pacifiers
- Tongue thrusting
- Nail-biting
These habits are most common in children, and the reason they are so harmful is because the jaws are in their most exponential growth at this time, and so any misalignments can be magnified by bad habits in early childhood.
So what are the types of overbites? There are a few main ones.
- Overjet. This is when your top teeth stick out over your bottom teeth and are more horizontal than they should be.
- Overbite. This is where your upper jaw is positioned to overlap the bottom teeth in the front. A little bit of overbite is natural.
- Open bite. This is when the teeth just don’t meet and you have open space between them.
- Cross-bite. This is when your upper teeth are inside your lower teeth. You can have it on one side of your jaw, both sides of the jaw, with your front teeth, or your back teeth.
- Underbite. This is when your lower front teeth sit in front of your upper front teeth.
What are the kinds of overbite? There are two main kinds of overbite – one is dental and the other is skeletal. A dental overbite is when your teeth are misaligned but the jaw is not affected. Skeletal overbites are when the jaw itself is out of alignment.
How long does it take to fix an overbite?
Depending on what you need to have done, fixing an overbite usually takes somewhere between six months and two years.
How to fix an overbite without braces?
It is possible to fix an overbite without using braces through cosmetic dentistry. This doesn’t really correct the jaw alignment, but rather aligns the teeth differently. Modern cosmetic dentistry techniques mean you don’t have to have your healthy teeth reshaped or go through tooth extraction in order to fit the veneers. It is expensive however, and will cost about the same as jaw surgery. Braces or Invisalign are much cheaper.
The software programs used will often give you an idea of what your new jawline will look like when the process is complete. Cosmetic dentistry can be used on anyone from teenagers up through adulthood and it can correct a number of issues including overbites, underbites, and gapped teeth.
Can Invisalign correct overbite?
The answer is yes! When you choose Invisalign, your orthodontist or Bay Harbor Islands dentist for braces will take a digital scan of your teeth and do a full assessment to determine the right course of action. The clinical software provided by Invisalign will not only map out your treatment plan, but will also be used to develop the aligners that will be used during your treatment. Then every couple of weeks you will get a new set of aligners that will help slowly move your teeth into a better position.
Invisalign is convenient because you can remove the aligners to eat and brush your teeth so your teeth stay clean without any extra tools necessary to try to brush and floss.
How to self-correct my overbite at home?
An overbite is one of the most common types of malocclusions and if it’s significant enough, it can cause temporomandibular joint pain, jaw pain, uneven wear of the teeth, premature wearing of the teeth and tooth decay, gum disease, and even difficulty chewing. Correcting an overbite leads to better overall dental health.
Many people want to try overbite correction by themselves at home. This can be a little dangerous in that there is no orthodontist overseeing your treatment. It’s hard to know when to stop correcting your overbite, because a little bit of overbite is natural and healthy.
That said, the proliferation of home clear aligner kits makes it even easier for people to try to correct their overbite at home than ever. If you choose to go this route, you will send an impression of your teeth to the company which they will use to make your aligners.
Then every few weeks a new set will be mailed to your house. You are solely in charge of everything, including making sure that you wear your aligners for the right amount of time every day, you keep up with the treatment plan, and you stop when the process is complete.
However, without the expertise of an orthodontist or Bay Harbor Islands dentist for braces overseeing the treatment process, you may not get the results you want, and it is possible that you will cause more harm than good. Plus, if you have other dental issues or you have a significant overbite, you will not have the advantage of being able to get the additional appliances necessary to make the corrections.
Why do I still have an overbite after I got my braces removed?
It does sometimes occur when you get your overbite correction braces removed that you still have a slight overbite. Most often this is because you had a moderate to severe case and instead of getting jaw surgery, your orthodontist corrected your teeth to a healthier position but not so much that it corrected the complete overbite.
You may also have a condition known as regression which is when your teeth drift back after the braces are removed.
Can an overbite be corrected without dental surgery?
The answer is yes! Both Invisalign and traditional braces are effective treatment options for overbites.
Overbite correction surgery
For people who have the most significant overbites, sometimes the only way to correct it is through surgery. This is also the most common way for adults who have more significant malocclusions to get their bite corrected.
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