1. Jessica Reyes
Mrs. Lester
Advanced Composition
11 October 2011
Early Treatment Research Paper
According to research, “By the age of 14, a young woman has completed 90% of her
lifetime growth; A young man's growth continues into his later teens, although his final growth
spurt may occur between 15 and 17 years old," explained orthodontist Dr. Tigani.” Most growth
has occurred for a young woman by age 14 and for a young man by age 16." The controversy
between early vs. late orthodontic treatment is debatable between orthodontists. There are
advantages to early orthodontics, and surprisingly someliabilities to that approach.The decision
ultimately lies with the parent, although a large factor is whether or not the child is having
insecurity issues, comfort complaints, and also greater chances of prolonged treatment in the
future. Whether or not a child should obtain early orthodontic treatment is the issue that is
defined.The decision to have or not have braces impact younger children, and it also has
solutions and uncertain outlooks.
For the most part, the issue ofearly orthodontic treatment is defined by the controversy it
poses and its positive and negative results. In the “Health” section of the Wall Street Journal, the
disbelief of parents is expressed. Parents are wrongly led to believe that once a child does receive
early treatment that will be all the treatment needed(Keates 1). Early treatment can prevent larger
oral issues later. Avoiding larger issues is why parents possibly believe early treatment will be
the only treatment needed, but really it could just mean small immediate treatment for small
future treatments. For the issue to be recognized, parents might want to be educated on the exact

2. procedures their child is receiving to achieve the best results in the most efficient amount of
time. In essence, according to The American Association of Orthodontists (AAO), the suggested
time to visit an orthodontist is by the age of seven (Swenson 1).Most of the time the age seven is
just an approximation because the majority of the time all growth of teeth will be on track. Even
if treatment is needed later,the checkup will just be a good estimation for how long treatment
will be needed. This checkup gives the patient security that either everything is fine or it gives
the patient enough time to fix issues that might not have been treatable. Catching anything
problematic will be beneficial to the patient, but also to the parental finances. If there is any
abnormal issue before the age seven, a visit to the orthodontist could be very useful. The early
treatment approach can catch a problem with orthodontics for future traumatic issues that could
be extremely costly.Knowingly, Orthodontic treatment can be performed at almost any age;
although the normal time is between 10 and 14, it is not uncommon to even see adults with
braces now (Nagar 1).The controversy begins with the question of age appropriate braces. Now
that it is more common for adults to want to improve their smiles, is sooner better than
later?Sooner is wiser and more efficient for children and even adults. To define the issue is to
understand the pros and cons which are that treatment too early may mean the child will be in
braces another time, or even misalignment. Waiting could mean longer treatment time or even
issues that are noticed too late to fix, something such as the proper expansion of the palate.
Moreover, the impact of early orthodontic treatment is problematic as a person matures,
because the success rate of manipulating the jaw or skeletal structure decreases as well as the rate
of unfixable oral adjustments (Koenig 1).For instance, Dr. Swenson recognizes that the impact
of not receiving early treatment could maximize the effects of abnormal growth patterns, make
the treatment with braces more difficult and longer, maximize chances of severe malocclusions,

3. and tamper with facial appearance and self-esteem.The impact could be permanently damaging
so some might ask why not early treatment. Some may not realize serious issues so that could be
a barrier between receiving early treatment. The parent is the one who decides whether a young
child sees an orthodontist, so factors such as self-esteem are inevitably out of the child’s hands.
Also, according to an orthodontist, the impact would be that parents can save a great amount of
money and time with early treatment plan for their child (Jeremy 1).Taking into consideration
that an early treatment plan means a shorter treatment plan is what Dr. Jeremy means by cost
efficiency. This route could be the reason why more people will choose early treatment. The
straightening of permanent incisors will not usually be straightened until about eight or ten and
straightening is to correct functional problems or even more serious problem later on (Swenson
1). This particular case calls for a later age in early treatment, yet when an adult faces this
problem; the impact and resolution will most likely be very different. With certain cases, the
impact of the issue will affect an adult more than a child. In sum, the impact of the issue is
different for all ages and oral problems,but most have a resolution.
Resolving the issue is truly in the hands of the patient, parent, and dentists who routinely
checks on patients. Early phase can move permanent teeth but for children around twelve years
old; this will help define the issue and intercept future problems (Keates 1).This will be a factor
of achieving a better smile when future problems arise. In turn this problem can be solved earlier
than later.Early phase, or phase one of treatment, is one easily obtainable resolution. On the other
hand, according to orthodontist representatives, “to make braces more acceptable and fun for
young people, manufacturers have made brightly colored elastics” (Nagar 1). The smart idea of
having a “cool” look of having braces, makes braces more fun and appealing to the younger or
early stage of treatment demographic. Persistency and consistency this makes treatment time

4. faster, which it will also be the key to achieving more desirable results in early
stages.Subsequently, issues found later on only have more serious resolutions; extractions and
interception seem to be the best for several problems caught later than preferred (Koenig 1).The
solution may not be simple, but there is usually one that can be performed. Although some
solutions are more abstract they are there and known. The positive thing is that the solution has
been recognized and if people are more educated,solutions then can be executed and hopefully
there will be less confusion on early treatment versus later treatment.
The outlook of the issue has a bright future because of all the awareness that the dentist
gives, and also because of the controversy of early treatment or not. With awareness comes the
need and desire for the best possible outlook.Prevention and earlier interception are the best way
and most effective way to have a layout and a plan. With this knowledge most will have
successful results.Awareness is a key to success and also execution.When persistency and
awareness are combined early treatment will be the best option for most. The outlook could be
looked at in several lights though because kids want the ideal of a perfect smile and orthodontist
tend to feel rushed and pressured to achieve this (Keates 1).If an orthodontist feels rushed, the
results might be skewed in a negative way.This will probably result in an unhappy patient. In
conclusion, such treatments as a palatal expander can only be used as a younger child whose
jaws and skeletal structure can be manipulated (Keates 1).Therefore, the outlook for early
treatment rather than for later treatment is positive because more can be manipulated and
rearranged so that the best smile is achieved. The younger the child is the more the Orthodontist
has to work with, and also the child has a higher chance for better results. The outlook for the
issue is bright and promising for those who are aware of phase one and early treatment.

5. Early orthodontic treatment versus Later Orthodontic treatment is defined by the positive
and negatives. Its impact is problematic for the patient and their future smile. The resolutions are
known and just waiting to be executed. Lastly, the outlook is positive with large amounts of
awareness. Conclusively, the controversy is still debatable because of matter of opinion and
severity of the oral issue.