Gaps in teeth can occur in a variety of ways, including genetics or incidents like being hit in the mouth or teeth migration from consistent habits. Most commonly, gapped teeth make their appearance in the front two teeth, giving an unusually wide space between them. Traditionally, dentists would correct a set of gapped teeth by using braces or guards to push and pull the teeth together. This would result in a uniform smile over a long amount of time. Today, we prefer to approach the treatment options by placing aligner trays at the front of the line.
Gaps and Aligner Trays
Aligner trays are similar to braces because they apply pressure which pushes your teeth into a uniform position. They are used to fix a large variety of teeth issues, from incorrect bites to gapping. Where they differ is in the use of plastics over metals. Aligner trays are typically clear and almost invisible when being worn — braces are always visible. And what’s better is that you can receive your trays and immediately put them on, adding to the convenience. They also tend to work faster than traditional methods because every few weeks when a new one arrives, they are slightly tighter, and thus you are continuously making progress as you wear them. Braces would require a trip to us to tighten them and replace broken parts.
Are There Other Options?
Outside of going the traditional way, there aren’t really a lot of good options for correcting gapped teeth. Some people have attempted to fix them by building up the visuals of the teeth with tooth-colored resin, but that doesn’t tend to look natural. Others opt for getting veneers to fit over their gapped teeth, and while that fixes the natural-looking issue, veneers can sometimes break or chip. For more information on how we can help you get a uniform smile, contact us today.
