Dental Crowding: What it is, Types and Treatments

Many patients, both children and adults, come to the dentist because their teeth are crooked or crowded in the mouth. This alteration in the placement of teeth in the arch is known as dental crowding. 

Dental crowding is most visible when it occurs in the front of the mouth, and in general, it is more common in the lower arch than in the upper arch. This is usually a dental aesthetic problem because of the image it gives to your smile. It is also a health problem, as it is very difficult to clean between the teeth when you suffer from dental crowding.

Dental crowding is one of the most common alterations in the position of teeth and, although it is very difficult to prevent, there are various orthodontic treatments to eliminate it depending on its severity.

What is dental crowding?

Dental crowding is a malocclusion caused by a lack of space for the correct development of the teeth. Without the necessary space, teeth can become crooked, rotated or sometimes overlapping one on top of the other. This is a common problem that affects thousands of people all over the world and has two aspects, the first, functional difficulty in eating and the second, aesthetics.

There are different types of treatments for the solution of crowding, which will vary depending on each person and their degree of complexity. The different degrees of dental crowding are:

– Mild dental crowding in cases of early age (7-11 years), the treatment consists of the placement of functional appliances with fixed expanders or removable expansion plates contributing to the development and growth of the bone bases.

– Patients with moderate crowding. This can be solved with a slight stripping, which consists of filing slightly between some teeth to gain space and thus correct the slight crowding using orthodontics without the need for dental extractions.

– In patients with severe cases, where the crowding is greater than 7 mm, in this case extractions are necessary, mainly of the premolars. Subsequently, orthodontics is used to treat crowding, such as metal brackets, aesthetic brackets, lingual braces or invisible aligners.

Why does dental crowding occur?

  • The causes of this problem can be very varied, the most frequent being genetic inheritance. Another aspect that can cause crowding is an unbalanced diet or certain hygiene or eating habits that are harmful to oral health, such as the consumption of carbonated drinks or sugary foods. Habits that usually develop during puberty and adolescence.
  • The problem of crowding not only affects the aesthetics of the patient, but also generates functional problems that can affect eating and speaking. There are different types of dental crowding:
  • Primary crowding: this is caused by genetics and a poor diet. It is therefore important that babies do not overextend their soft diet as the bone develops more slowly and this can affect the dentition. The paediatrician should tell the family when the baby should start chewing other types of food to strengthen the health of the gums and promote optimal dental development.
  • Secondary crowding: this type of problem occurs in the patient due to bad habits such as mouth breathing or the bad habit of thumb sucking, known as digital sucking. 
  • Tertiary crowding: this problem usually appears in adulthood with the eruption of the so-called wisdom teeth. When these teeth erupt, the space in the jaw is reduced and there is crowding and misalignment with the rest of the teeth.

Solutions for dental crowding

As mentioned above, there are different solutions for treating dental crowding, but everything will depend on each specific case, and the recommendations that the dentist prescribes for each situation, after a thorough study of each case. In general, most cases of dental crowding are solved by means of orthodontic treatment, which helps to put the teeth back in place in an aesthetically correct and buccally healthy way.

Invisible aligners are the main trend in removable orthodontic treatment and offer many advantages for correcting crowding. Impress aligners help correct the appearance of your smile in a comfortable and discreet way, which makes them a great solution to crowded teeth without the need for braces.

At Impress, they have a specialised team that guarantees you will have aligned teeth and the smile you have always dreamed of with invisible orthodontic treatment. They advise you on pre-treatment, so that you can have a perfect smile, without complications and in the simplest way possible. Don’t hesitate to visit their website and contact Impress, you are in the best hands.