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Malocclusions: What Makes a Bite Bad?

Live Life Smiling

malocclusion
  • Holmes and Palmer Orthodontics
  • January 19, 2022

 

HUMAN TEETH ARE supposed to fit together in a particular way. That’s how we can speak clearly and chew effectively. If someone’s upper and lower teeth don’t fit together properly, we call it a malocclusion or bad bite. Besides impeding the important functions of chewing and speaking, a malocclusion can lead to jaw problems, increase the risk of teeth breaking, and it can even impact the digestion process.

What Causes a Bad Bite?

In some cases, malocclusions are the result of genetics. If a child inherits large teeth from Dad and small teeth from Mom, they’ll probably have some issues with crowding and alignment, including a bad bite. Some of the oral habits many children have in their developmental years can also impact the way their adult teeth fit together, like thumbsucking, lip sucking, tongue thrusting, nail-biting, teeth clenching, and mouth breathing.

That might seem like a lot of ways to end up with a bad bite, but these bad oral habits can be broken. Parents can help their kids develop a better bite in the long run by discouraging these habits as they grow — something that’s also important to do after orthodontic treatment so that their teeth end up back where they started!

Types of Malocclusions

In a healthy bite, the upper teeth should sit slightly past the lower teeth when the jaws are closed, with the points of the upper molars fitting into the grooves of the lower molars. Here are five of the most common ways a bite can deviate from the healthy norm:

  1. In an excessive overbite, the upper teeth overjet or overlap the lower teeth more than they should.
  2. A deep bite is such a severe overbite that the upper front teeth overlap the lower front teeth entirely, sometimes driving the lower front teeth into the upper gum tissue, risking injury to it.
  3. An open bite, sometimes the result of a tongue thrust habit or aggressive thumbsucking beyond the preschool years, involves flared upper front teeth and a gap between them and their lower counterparts when biting down.
  4. A crossbite happens when some upper teeth are on the outside and some lower teeth are on the outside when biting down.
  5. An underbite is when the lower teeth jut out in front of the upper teeth when the jaw is closed.

Correcting Malocclusions with Orthodontic Treatment

Any of these bad bites can be corrected by modern orthodontic treatment, typically with much less of the bulky headgear we see in older movies. It’s also less common to need to resort to jaw surgery in modern orthodontics, although severe cases sometimes still require it. We tend to use much lower profile and more hassle-free treatment for malocclusions today, and we love that we can offer these kinds of solutions to our patients.

Schedule an Initial Consultation

If you suspect you might have one of the types of malocclusions described above or some other form of orthodontic issue, don’t wait to schedule a consultation with us. We can take a look and give you an idea of the treatment process we would use to give you the properly aligned smile you deserve!

From our team to our patients, we love our practice family!

Top image used under CC0 Public Domain license. Image cropped and modified from original.
The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

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EVERY SMILE TELLS A SPECIAL STORY

We are thankful for the opportunity to serve our community with excellent care and take pride in our mission of having a patient-centered philosophy. Check out what our patients are saying about us!

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Jane E.
It isn't always easy to find providers that are especially patient and kind to patients with special needs. This group ALWAYS go out of their way to make us feel welcome and comfortable. The staff is wonderful! We are extremely blessed to have the orthodontic care we need from this business.
Jane E.
It isn't always easy to find providers that are especially patient and kind to patients with special needs. This group ALWAYS go out of their way to make us feel welcome and comfortable. The staff is wonderful! We are extremely blessed to have the orthodontic care we need from this business.
Legacy S.
Today at Drs Holmes and Palmer my Granddaughter ,Legacy Spurlock , had her braces put on.
I am so happy we Chose them. Not only was the Young lady, putting the braces on very nice That made Legacyy feel very comfortable and answered every question that she asked, and she asked a lot.
We are home now. She doesn’t need anything for pain, She is very proud of her Yes braces and her experience she had.
Thank you to every one that made her experience. One she will always remember.
Legacy S.
Today at Drs Holmes and Palmer my Granddaughter ,Legacy Spurlock , had her braces put on.
I am so happy we Chose them. Not only was the Young lady, putting the braces on very nice That made Legacyy feel very comfortable and answered every question that she asked, and she asked a lot.
We are home now. She doesn’t need anything for pain, She is very proud of her Yes braces and her experience she had.
Thank you to every one that made her experience. One she will always remember.
Staci A.
Very friendly and experienced. Awesome with kids! My son, Evan is 9 and was a little nervous for his first orthodontist consult appointment. They worked well showing and explaining everything they were getting ready to do. Even let him “help” some!! He has a follow up in 6 months to see if it’s time for his braces then. He’s not as worried about his next appointment now. Highly recommend!! Thank you!
Staci A.
Very friendly and experienced. Awesome with kids! My son, Evan is 9 and was a little nervous for his first orthodontist consult appointment. They worked well showing and explaining everything they were getting ready to do. Even let him “help” some!! He has a follow up in 6 months to see if it’s time for his braces then. He’s not as worried about his next appointment now. Highly recommend!! Thank you!
Jessie P.
They are very nice and friendly and such wonderful place would definitely recommend.
Jessie P.
They are very nice and friendly and such wonderful place would definitely recommend.
Amanda “ManDee” T.
This Orthodontist and the employees are amazing. They're very patient and kind with the young patients... I highly recommend!!!!
Amanda “ManDee” T.
This Orthodontist and the employees are amazing. They're very patient and kind with the young patients... I highly recommend!!!!
kristen W.
This is our first experience with orthodontics and we are very pleased with the service and friendliness of staff! They are so helpful and welcoming! Definitely recommend to my friends and family!
kristen W.
This is our first experience with orthodontics and we are very pleased with the service and friendliness of staff! They are so helpful and welcoming! Definitely recommend to my friends and family!
Andrea H.
Great customer service as always! The ladies at the front desk are always welcoming and very friendly. We appreciate the promptness of getting our daughter in for an emergency visit!
Andrea H.
Great customer service as always! The ladies at the front desk are always welcoming and very friendly. We appreciate the promptness of getting our daughter in for an emergency visit!
Emily B.
They are awesome with my girl and offer brace bucks! Great reinforcement and amazing people! 😊
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