Category: Orthodontist

Which Orthodontist Is Right For You?

When it comes to your child’s smile, choosing the right orthodontist is a crucial decision. At Impact Orthodontics in Midnapore, Calgary SE, we understand how important this choice is. We believe the perfect orthodontic experience combines a welcoming atmosphere, advanced treatment options, modern technology, comfort, transparent pricing, and knowledgeable practitioners who truly care about their patients.

 

A Welcoming Atmosphere

From the moment you step into our office, you will feel like part of the family. Our team, led by Dr. Jen and Dr. Dena, strives to create a positive and supportive environment for both children and parents. As the only two-woman orthodontic partnership in Calgary, we bring a unique perspective to patient care.

 

What Is The Best Timing For A Visit?

Orthodontic care can be provided to children as young as 5 or 6 (this is rare) and adults as mature as 80…and everywhere in between.  Ideally, a first visit should be around age 7.  This is when the first adult teeth are starting to come into the mouth and we can identify if any orthodontic treatment is needed now or in the future.  Most children will not require braces, aligners or other appliances until they have all of their adult teeth (11-13 years old).

 

Early Treatment Options

Approximately  20% of children under the age of 10 will benefit from orthodontic treatment.  We call this early or interceptive orthodontics.  The goal with this type of care is to ensure the adult teeth can grow into the mouth into a good position and the jaw bones are in the right position and are the right size to end up with a good bite.

Comprehensive Treatment Options

We specialize in clear aligners and use a 100% custom braces system called LightForce. But our services don’t stop there. We also monitor growth and development in children at no charge, ensuring they receive the right treatment at the right time. And for those who’ve completed their treatment, we offer retainers to maintain that beautiful smile.  If you are looking for a first, second or third opinion from an orthodontist in Calgary SE, please come by and see us.

 

Cutting-Edge Technology

At Impact Orthodontics, we’re proud to incorporate the latest technology into our practice. We use iTero intraoral scanners, eliminating the need for uncomfortable impressions. Our dental pain eraser ensures tooth movement is comfortable, and our 100% digital systems and treatment planning allow for precise and efficient treatments.

 

Transparent Pricing and Insurance Assistance

We believe in transparent pricing with no hidden costs, so you know exactly what to expect. Additionally, we’re here to assist you with any insurance claims and can direct-bill your insurance company, making the process as smooth as possible.

 

Experienced and Caring Orthodontists in Calgary SE

Dr. Jen and Dr. Dena are not just experienced orthodontists; they’re educators too. They’ve even written a book about orthodontics! We refer to our initial consultations as ‘tooth school,’ where we help patients and parents understand the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of our treatments.

But don’t just take our word for it! Here’s what one of our patients had to say in Google reviews:

“We have had the best experience at Impact! A super friendly, energetic, attentive, knowledgeable team of women. I appreciate how they go above and beyond in their explanation of the work they do. Our girls are enjoying their Orthodontic experience, which makes the process easier for all.”

“Professional, Efficient, and thorough.   The staff at Impact Orthodontics are very professional, courteous and thorough.   The office staff are so friendly and polite, Drs Jen and Dena and their clinical team know how to calm the kiddos nerves – and make the braces process easy and comfortable.  Our 12 year old son has sensory needs and the care and attention he has received from Karen is second to none.  Karen is patient, accommodating and has made the light force brackets a great experience with custom brackets for our son.  Bravo and thank you to the entire team for outstanding orthodontic care for our family !”

 

Free Initial Consultation

If you are looking for an orthodontist in Calgary’s SE (or SW), look no further.

At Impact Orthodontics, we offer a free initial consultation for people under the age of 20. And the best part? You don’t need a referral from your dentist to see us!  This appointment takes about 1 hour and we will provide you with information on the teeth and jaws, if and when treatment is recommended and all the information you need about fees, insurance, payment plans, etc. 

 

Choosing an orthodontist is a big decision, but we’re here to make it easier. At Impact Orthodontics, we’re more than just a practice; we’re a family. And we can’t wait to welcome you to ours. Contact us today to book your free consultation!

Calgary Orthodontists Explain Tooth Numbers

Today i thought i would take you on a little journey through the very beginning of dental school when you learn how to number or count teeth.

All Calgary orthodontists will use this numbering system.

You’ve probably been sitting in the chair in our office at some point and heard Dr. Jen or Dr. Dena mutter something like “Oh there’s an open contact between the 3.3 and 3.4.”

Some of you have asked what we mean and we’ve explained it but I will give you the details now.

The way teeth are numbered in Canada, and it can be different in different places of the world, are by quadrant. Your upper right is the first quadrant, your upper left is the second quadrant, your lower left is the third quadrant, and your lower right is the fourth quadrant.

One, two, three, four.

From Front To Back – this is how orthodontists do it

The way we count the teeth is from the front going back. Your very front big tooth is number one. The rest follow… two, three, four, five, six, seven, and your wisdom tooth, if you have one, would be number eight.

It’s the same in each quadrant, so if I take a look at tooth number 1.6 it means we’re on the upper right and the sixth tooth back, which is the first molar. Your Calgary Orthodontists might be talking about this tooth because it is the one we look at most often to see if your bite is in the right place.

You’ll always hear the first number is where in your mouth it is, and the second number is which tooth it is in that area.

There is another set of numbers that we use if you still have baby teeth in your mouth.

This would apply to most children under the age of 12. Baby teeth are counted using different quadrant numbers. The upper right is 5, upper left is 6, lower left is 7 and lower right is 8. If we have baby teeth that are remaining on the upper right it would always start with a five and then the number of the tooth that goes in that order.

If you have a few teeth that are grown up teeth and a few teeth that are baby teeth on the upper right some of them will be called one-something and some of them will be called five-something and that is how we identify all the teeth in your mouth.

I hope you learned something new today!

A regular occurrence for me at the office is people smiling wide with lips as far apart from their teeth as possible to show me something. Often, the comment is “Can yellow teeth be whitened?” or “Do you think these look too yellow?” or “This is hopeless, isn’t it?

My response is generally a smile and a giggle and then some reassurance that everything to do with teeth is modifiable or fixable. That is why I love working on teeth so much…I can do almost anything!

 

Why Are My Teeth Yellow?

Teeth can be yellow for a number of reasons. The most common is simply that this is the natural colour of your teeth. The inner layer (dentin) of your tooth determines the shade that you project. This shade can be white, yellow, brown or gray. Whitening products can lighten all of these colours but is most effective on white and yellow base colours.

Above is a nice photo of a slice through a tooth. The outer layer is enamel and it tends to be quite translucent. The next layer (depicted in yellow here) is the dentin and this determines the colour of your teeth. The innermost layer is the nerve and blood vessel of the tooth and this is never visible unless a tooth has been broken or cut-into.

Whitening Products On The Market
A quick search of teeth whitening will overwhelm you with possibilities. All at-home whitening products fall into the following broad categories:

Crest Whitestrips

Whitening Toothpastes

Whitening Blue Lights

Whitening Mouthwash

Whitening gels and trays

 

Crest Whitestrips

The long and short of it is that Crest Whitestrips are simple, effective and affordable. They are often my first recommendation to someone that wants to start whitening for the first time. It is hard to do it wrong and most people are quite content to lighten their teeth a few shades.

Crest Whitestrips are also very easy to find and purchase. Many online retailers as well as local grocery and drug stores carry a variety of them at all times.

 

Whitening Toothpastes

I stated earlier that natural tooth colour is often the reason for them being yellow. Whitening toothpastes do not help with this issue. Whitening toothpastes are generally very good at removing stain from teeth. This stain can be from coffee, tea, wine, smoking, etc.

Whitening toothpastes are more abrasive than non-whitening toothpastes and they also contain ingredients that help to break-down stains. If your teeth are discoloured due to all the yummy things you are consuming, this would be an excellent choice to incorporate into your daily routine.

Whitening toothpastes are very affordable and since you are brushing your teeth twice a day (the dentist in me is wagging my finger in your direction) anyways, your routine and habits don’t have to change to see a nice result.

One note of warning here though. Using a whitening toothpaste that is VERY abrasive can damage your teeth irreversibly. Please stick to trusted brands and not fads.

 

Whitening Blue Light Systems

A system that has been around for decades in dental offices is Zoom Whitening. With this system you lay in a comfy dental chair, have a gel applied to your teeth and a blue light positioned over you until the process is complete. It only takes one appointment and is pretty powerful stuff.

It is no surprise that a do-it-yourself product has arisen on the marketplace to save people some money and make it convenient to whiten at home.

All of these systems use some form of gel or paste that you apply to your teeth and then a device with a light in it that you usually insert and wrap your lips around. This is often a slightly more expensive option to those listed above but results are very quick. Instant gratification comes at a premium!

 

Whitening Mouthwash

I had to do a little research on whitening toothpaste as I was writing this. I have the least experience with this type of product and I was curious what the claims and methods were.

My research led me to the conclusion that it works much the same as a whitening toothpaste would. The goal with this product is to remove surface stains from your teeth. Many of the companies that sell whitening mouthwash encourage their customers to pair it with a whitening toothpaste for maximum results.

 

Whitening Gels and Trays

This product also mimics what you may receive at a dental office if you went in asking for professional whitening. You can often purchase only the gel (great if you have trays you can use already) or an entire kit. I even came across several that included a blue light too.

These products require use for a number of days to get maximum results. It is important that you closely follow all directions as leaving this solution for too long or using it for too many days in a row can result in very painful teeth.

Surface stain is not the target of this product. The gel is targeting the internal colour of your teeth to lighten and brighten them.

 

Pick The Product That Is Right For You

With so many amazing options in the marketplace these days, you just have to decide which one is right for you. It has never been easier to turn those yellow teeth white from the comfort of your own home.

As a professional, I will add one more warning here (in case you missed the first one). Although trusted companies use safe and tested ingredients, you can permanently damage your teeth if you do not follow instructions as written.

All the best to you on your journey to a brighter, whiter smile!

Dr. Jen

#teethwhitening, #impactorthodontics, #drjen

How Do Crooked Front Teeth Move?

Are you curious about how teeth move? In the quick video (link above), Dr. Jen explains how teeth move (no scientific jargon here) so that you can understand what is happening as your teeth get straight.  Feel free to read below if you’d rather not watch the video.

 

We are going to talk about how teeth actually move. I’m not going to get super scientific on you here, we’re not going to talk about cytokines and all of that stuff, but i do think it’s important to understand the basics of how teeth move.

Many people with crooked front teeth are curious about how the process of tooth movement actually works.  Let’s take you through it step-by-step:

If you pretend your finger is a tooth, for the sake of argument. Now, if we want a tooth that is crooked to be straight, we are going to push on it. A tooth must have pressure on it for most hours of the day, around 22, for the tooth to respond in this way.

Your tooth has a crown (that’s the part above the gums) and then the root (the part in the bone), and it’s surrounded by gums gum tissue (pink). What happens is when we push on the top part of the tooth (the crown), the root of the tooth will put pressure on the bone because your tooth is one solid hard structure.

If i’m pushing on the top that means the top is going one way and the bottom is going the opposite way. Wherever there is pressure on bone the bone, it melts away or dissolves. There are cells that come there make the bone soft and take the bone away and then the root of the tooth will move into that new space. Then, on the other side, different cells come and they build the bone back up to make sure that it’s nice and solid and thick.

Tooth movement is a process of bone resorbing or melting away on one side of the tooth and new bone being deposited or formed on the other side of the tooth. When we stop moving that tooth, all the bone gets nice and firm and solid all the way around the tooth.

It’s crazy, you can move a tooth with a finger on your tooth for 22 hours a day (that’s how thumb suckers do it), you can move a tooth with plastic, or you can move a tooth with metal. Any combination of those things will work because all that actually matters is that pressure is being put on that tooth and consistent pressure will cause bone to change which allows teeth to move.

I hope that’s something that maybe you didn’t know already thanks for tuning in and i’ll see you next time.

The First Visit To An Orthodontist In Calgary Should Be At Age 7

We get asked, almost daily, about what the right time is for children to see the orthodontist in Calgary for the first time. The short answer is age 7. Both the Canadian and American Associations of Orthodontists recommend age 7 as the perfect time for an orthodontic evaluation.

This by no means indicates that all children require treatment at this age. The vast majority of children under age 10 do not require early orthodontic treatment. Age 7 happens to be the right age to determine what may be needed in the future.

Most 7 years olds will have lost at least a few of their baby teeth and the permanent teeth are beginning to become visible in the mouth. This allows us to see the size of those big grown-up teeth and how the teeth look like they are going to bite together.

If it appears that there will be a tooth size to jaw size problem or a bite problem, it is usually apparent. We can then advise if and when treatment will be needed. Most often, we simply watch these kids grow and determine treatment in the teen years when all grown-up teeth are in. This is usually age 11-15.

Let’s review a few common orthodontic problems seen in children that an orthodontist in Calgary would want to address:

 

Crowding

The baby teeth in the front of the mouth are usually quite a bit smaller than the adult teeth that come in after them. Crowding, like that above, is very common when this transition happens. Fortunately, the baby molars (near the back) are bigger than the adult teeth below and some space is gained near age 11.

Crowding can be corrected using appliances (like expanders or spacers), braces, or clear aligners (Invisalign, Angel, etc)

Crowding is a concern if:

1. There is so much crowding that the adult teeth may not be able to come in at all (impaction).

2. The crowding has made it so the teeth are biting together in a way that is causing damage to teeth or gums.

3. The esthetics of the crowding is harming the self-esteem of the child.

 

 

 

Sometimes the teeth are smaller than the mouth. This will result in spacing between the teeth. This is not a concern unless esthetics is a concern or the teeth are in a position that makes them prone to trauma (too far forward in the mouth).

Underbite

Underbites are when the lower teeth (and sometimes jaw) are in front of the upper teeth and jaw. This can be a tooth problem (in minor cases) or a tooth and jaw problem (in moderate to severe cases).

This is one of the few problems that should be treated early. If the teeth and jaws can be corrected before the onset of puberty, there is a good chance that less complicated procedures (tooth extraction and jaw surgery) can be avoided or minimized later.

 

 

This is when top teeth are too far in front of bottom teeth. The top and bottom teeth should touch each other in the front. Called a Class II bite, correction is usually best completed during the growth spurt of puberty (age 10-13 in girls and 12-15 in boys)

The lower jaw and teeth often need to come forward to correct this type of bite and this happens readily during rapid teen growth. There is also the possibility that upper teeth need to come backwards in this bite. Your orthodontist will let you know the best solution for your child.

Monitoring your child’s growth is key in order to not miss the growth spurt (girls, especially, can grow very quickly).

Overbite

Excessive overbite is when the upper teeth overlap too much of the lower teeth (vertical problem). The upper and lower teeth should be visible when biting the back teeth together.

This is called a deep bite and is best corrected when all of the adult teeth are present. Sometimes the lower teeth are biting hard against the roof of the mouth and causing pain. If this is the case, there are solutions to provide comfort until complete correction can be done.

A deep overbite is one of the most common types of bites that an orthodontist in Calgary might see.  In other parts of the world, different types of bites are more common.

 

This is essentially the opposite of an excessive overbite. Open bites are when the teeth do not overlap enough vertically. There should not be space between the upper and lower teeth from the front.

Bites like this make it difficult to bite through thin things like lettuce. The front teeth are not able to work in the way they were intended.

There are many causes for this type of bite:

1. Habits such as thumb, finger or blanket sucking.

2. Abnormal growth of the bones in the jaws.

3. Eruption issues with the new teeth coming into the mouth.

An orthodontist needs to evaluate the cause in order to advise when correction should happen.

A crossbite means that the teeth are biting on the wrong side of one another. All of the upper teeth should be slightly outside the bottom teeth. The photo above shows the left side of the bite entirely on the wrong side.

Crossbites can involve single teeth or groups of teeth. This bite problem is generally corrected as soon as possible as it can result in trauma to the teeth and/or abnormal growth of the lower jaw bone.

There are many reasons that baby teeth may be gone earlier than they should be. In the photo above, the black circle indicates where an adult tooth is supposed to fit between the 2 teeth we can see.

 

Baby teeth hold the space needed for the grown-up teeth to come in. If they are lost before the adult tooth is ready to come in, space can be lost and teeth can drift around. This often results in crowding or impaction (no where for the tooth to go so it stays in the bone). Your orthodontist can tell you when treatment should happen.

SUMMARY

The above list is by no means comprehensive. It does give a list of some of the most common tooth problems that exist. It is always critical that you speak to your local dentist or orthodontist to see what is right for your child.

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