The American Association of Orthodontists recommends that children be evaluated by an orthodontist at age 7, although most children can wait until age 8. Orthodontists are trained in facial growth and can identify children who will benefit from early treatment.
Dr. Lawrence teaches many courses on how to recognize children who would benefit from early treatment.
He teaches this and many other topics to the orthodontic residents at Case Western Reserve University and the dental hygiene students at Lakeland Community College. He also provides continuing education to local dentists and their staffs.
We won’t rush into treatment just to have you as a paying patient.
We will treat your children’s health care with the same respect and consideration that we treat our own (and how we expect to be treated elsewhere). With an evaluation at our office, Dr. Lawrence will determine if your child would benefit from early treatment. If not, he will recommend when your child should come back and we will monitor their facial growth until they will benefit from treatment. There is no charge for the initial evaluation and there is no charge for the follow-up visits until treatment starts.
If you or your dentist are unsure if your child needs to be evaluated, then the answer is YES:
They should be evaluated. Please call for an appointment for your child. We will take digital X-rays and photos, and Dr. Lawrence will do a complete orthodontic examination. Then he will recommend the best plan for your child (which very well may be waiting for further growth and development). However, if your child needs treatment, the benefits of catching the problem early are huge.
By seeing children when they are young, we can often spot subtle problems with jaw growth and the emerging adult teeth, while baby teeth are present. While your child’s teeth may appear aligned, there could be a problem developing. An orthodontic examination, with X-rays, will detect the problems. Early treatment may prevent more serious problems from developing, and may make treatment at a later age shorter and less complicated. In many cases, we will be able to achieve results that are not possible later in growth, especially in regards to minimizing or eliminating the need for permanent tooth removal.
