NEW PATIENTS

ORTHODONTIC OFFICE VISITS

Our approach is comprehensive in nature. Therefore, we need to study all relevant details of your case before providing you with an accurate diagnosis. This will help us execute a mutually agreeable plan for your future care.

THIS IS BIGGER THAN TEETH

Orthodontics is built around the belief that the mouth is the epicenter of your health. Not only does orthodontics help correct malocclusions and crooked teeth but more and more evidence links oral health to the health and well-being of the entire body.

Your treatment will take place in four parts. The first three visits will allow us to assess and diagnose your overall systemic health, and the fourth will involve either active or passive treatment based on the results of our assessment and diagnosis.

YOUR FIRST VISIT

Let's start out right!

Your first appointment is key – it will help us assess your condition and provide a foundation for discussing your needs and expectations.

We will first perform a thorough oral examination in addition to a 27-point oral systemic evaluation that will help us assess the structural relationship of your bones, muscles and teeth as well as the functional relationships of breathing, swallowing and chewing.

Next, we will discuss any orthodontic concerns you may have.

Finally, we will review our findings from your evaluation, which may include any jaw irregularities, muscle dysfunction and/or dental abnormalities, then provide our recommendations for future care.

YOUR SECOND VISIT

Oral Systemic Diagnostic Records

We utilize records like photographs, radiographs, impressions, scanning, diagnostic cast fabrication, jaw instrumentation/tracking, and laboratory tests as necessary to create a comprehensive diagnostic record of your history.

We then build a customized diagnosis and treatment plan based on your specific needs for returning your mouth-jaw system to optimal health.

What is jaw tracking? The jaw joint represents the center of growth of the lower jaw. Inflammatory/compressive disorders of the jaw growth plate have been associated with unfavorable lower jaw growth and profile deficiencies. This affects the long-term lower jaw movement patterns and thus tooth wear and gum breakdown.

Jaw joint tracking is the core of our treatment management. If you can’t measure how your teeth relate to your jaw joint, you can’t fix it. Jaw joint tracking is a mechanical representation of an anatomical position for diagnosis.

We position the teeth to fit the joint – not the joint to fit the teeth. This is important because if the teeth fit the joint, the jaw is stable. If the jaw adapts to the teeth, that adaptation is unstable. We incorporate a fully adjustable Panadent® articulator to record the initial tooth to jaw-joint position and to track its position throughout treatment. The goal is to position your teeth so that your jaw joint works optimally at the end of treatment.

YOUR THIRD VISIT

Oral Systemic Consultation

Now that we have evaluated your mouth-jaw system, obtained diagnostic records and discussed your concerns, we will provide you with the following:

• Skeletal diagnosis, comprehensively evaluating any existing jaw irregularities
• Neuromuscular diagnosis, comprehensively evaluating any existing facial, jaw, oral, pharyngeal muscle dysfunction
• Dental diagnosis, comprehensively evaluating structural and function relationships of the teeth
• Proposed treatment plan/options – each plan has corresponding objectives and concerns regarding treatment outcome (prognosis) which will be discussed and mutually agreed upon

YOUR FUTURE VISITS

Passive Treatment

Passive treatment helps us understand what has changed since beginning treatment.

Serial growth images, x-rays, and follow-up records will give us the context we need to evaluate changes in the system due to growth and development while allowing us to assess treatment at the biologically best time.

Active Treatment

Active treatment includes future appointments scheduled with our treatment coordinator who will facilitate details of appliance placement and make any necessary adjustments.