Braces for Mixed Dentition

The advantage of treating patients in this age group is :

1. The extra oral appliances (like head gears and face masks) and any other functional appliance that alters the face form are not much of an esthetic concern and are taken well by the patients.
2. The follow up and scheduling becomes easier for this age group as they do not stay busy with work.
3. The patients can be motivated positively/negatively for proper compliance.
4. Growth advantage can be utilized for maximum skeletal effects.
5. The jaws and bones are ‘moldable’ and thus allow maximum correction without much iatrogenic damage.
6. A mild malocclusion or a developing one can be prevented from getting converted into a major and complex one.

The drawbacks and difficulties of this age group include :

1. Carelessness and casual attitude lead to appliance loss and breakages.
2. The treatment usually gets extended till 14 years of age at least, followed by long retention periods, may lead to compliance burn out and consequent relapses.
3. Long treatment durations cause iatrogenic hard tissue damages like demineralization and white spot lesions, root resorption and periodontal breakdown.
4. Continuation of growth causes changing occlusal relationships and the predictability of the case should ensure sufficient over corrections.

Hence, we have seen it is not just a crowded or spaced arch that a dentist must look for while checking a mixed dentition child. A thorough knowledge of the mechanics and physiology of growth and development will form essential diagnostic aids. It would be ideal to get an opinion of the Orthodontist where all the factors may be kept in mind and evaluated accordingly.