Everyone is born with baby teeth. They fall out and our adult teeth grow in. However, sometimes our baby teeth fall out too soon, or our adult teeth need a little guidance while they grow in. This is where orthodontists, like Orthotime, a leading Utah orthodontist, utilize space maintainers.
These space maintainers are exactly what their name is. They are plastic or stainless steel that is anchored to a fake tooth that maintains the proper space for the new adult tooth to properly come into. When a baby tooth is lost too soon it can no longer act as a guide for the adult tooth and it could erupt in a completely wrong place. This will often cause many problems as the child grows older and will require lots of orthodontic work.
There are many different types of space maintainers. Some are fixed and some, for older children, are removable. Talk to an orthodontist to understand if your child may need a space maintainer. It can often be determined through a simple oral examine or through an x-ray.
