Baby teeth actually have a number of important functions, including saving space for the permanent teeth to make their debut in their proper places. If your child loses a primary tooth early because of decay, injury or periodontal disease, the other teeth can shift, potentially causing problems with tooth alignment. Dental space maintainers are used to combat this and ensures the grown-up teeth have room to erupt.
Benefits of Dental Space Maintainers
They save space between two or more primary teeth to allow permanent teeth to erupt properly.
Children get used to the appliances quickly and can stop using them when the adult tooth is in place.
They help guide permanent teeth, reducing the chances of orthodontic problems like crowding.
Making Room for Grown-Up Teeth
There are a few different types of dental space maintainers and they can be either fixed or removable depending on your child’s needs. The appliances are custom-made to fit your little one’s mouth and save space where the missing baby tooth used to reside, guiding the permanent tooth (or teeth) where we want it to go. Once your child’s adult tooth is coming in correctly, we remove the space maintainer. Kids will have to come in for the occasional appointment while wearing a space maintainer, so we can make sure everything is on track.
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Most kids start to lose teeth around age six, usually beginning with the middle front teeth.
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Orthodontists have estimated 30% of their cases have their origins in the early loss of baby teeth.
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Tooth decay remains the most common cause of premature tooth loss in children.
