A crossbite is a fairly common dental condition where the bite of your teeth is misaligned. It can be identified by looking at where your teeth sit when you close your mouth. If your upper teeth sit behind your lower teeth when you close your mouth, that is a sign you might have a crossbite. Crossbites are usually caused by a few things: genetics, childhood habits like thumb sucking, or adult teeth growing in too quickly in a child’s mouth.

If you have a dental crossbite, it’s very likely that one of your parents or grandparents has it as well since it is often passed down genetically. If no one in your family has a crossbite, then it could have been caused by the way your teeth grew during childhood. In these cases, a crossbite occurs when adult teeth grow in before the baby teeth fall out. The permanent teeth usually grow around the baby teeth, causing the misalignment.

Unfortunately, these causes are out of your control, so you can’t just implement better dental hygiene habits and expect the crossbite to correct itself. Luckily for you, there are plenty of crossbite treatment options available at Braces Braces to correct the misalignment of your teeth.

Crossbite Treatments

Palate Expander

Oftentimes with a crossbite, a palate expander is used to correct the misaligned bite. By extending the upper palate, or jaw, this allows your lower teeth more room to fit inside your upper teeth. This is most effective with children and teenagers because their mouths are still growing, which makes it easier to change the way the mouth is formed.

Braces

Braces are often used simultaneously with a palate expander to fix the crossbite permanently. Braces, either traditional metal braces or clear braces, are used to straighten the teeth, which in turn corrects the way the teeth sit in your mouth. This fixes the cause of the crossbite.

Surgery

In more severe cases of crossbites in adults, jaw surgery may be recommended by your dental professional. Jaw surgery resets the jaw in order to correct the misalignment before it causes further health complications. Further treatment, like braces or nighttime retainers, may be required after surgery in order to ensure the crossbite is corrected.

Is Orthodontic Treatment Necessary?

Although some people choose not to correct their crossbite, we don’t usually suggest this unless the crossbite is extremely minor. The reasoning behind this goes beyond just aesthetic purposes. Leaving your crossbite as is can create other dental and health issues for you in the long run. For starters, having a crossbite makes cleaning your teeth much more difficult than if your teeth were correctly aligned. This can cause tooth decay and gum disease because you are unable to remove built-up plaque in hard to reach places. Not fixing your crossbite can also cause jaw pain and severe headaches from the excess pressure put on the jawline by the overlapping teeth.

Contact Braces Braces Today

If you have a crossbite, consider giving Braces Braces a call to have our expert dental team take a look at your teeth and see what we think is best for your individual circumstances. Based on the severity, we may suggest one of these crossbite treatments, or let you know that your crossbite is not severe enough to cause any damage to your health. We look forward to meeting you, and helping you reach your smile and overall health goals!