Buck Teeth

Teens are the difficult years while growing up. This is because these are the years where you land up with the most embarrassing nicknames, which more often than not, stick with you for life. One common nickname is Bugs Bunny. When you hear the words 'Bugs Bunny' there can only be two things that could come to mind - one is the characteristic know-it-all look with a carrot in one hand and the other is an image of buck teeth. Buck teeth is the layman's term for a condition where the upper front teeth are forwardly placed. The dental term for this condition is overjet. A person may have buck teeth because either the entire jaw is forwardly placed or because the teeth are angulated and forwardly placed. In either case, it is important to treat buck teeth at the earliest.

Why to Treat Buck Teeth?
While aesthetic appearance is the most common motive for people that go in for buck teeth correction, there are many reasons why one should get protruding teeth corrected at the earliest. The first and foremost reason, besides aesthetics, is that when teeth are protruding in nature, they are very vulnerable to trauma. If a person falls on his face, he could irreversibly damage or break this front teeth. If the tooth cannot be saved by root canal treatment, then there may even be need for tooth extraction. Hence, due to the vulnerable position of these teeth, it is best to treat them at the earliest.

How to Fix Buck Teeth?
If you're wondering about how to deal with buck teeth, then the treatment opted for will depend on the underlying cause. First, the case will need to be diagnosed to establish whether the person has only protruding teeth, that is, whether the cause is purely dental, or whether, the person also has a protruding upper jaw (maxilla). If the cause of buck teeth is purely dental, then the treatment plan will consist of orthodontic treatment. In this case, with the help of appliances and wires known as orthodontic braces, the teeth are pulled back and brought into their desired position in the mouth. In fact, with the help of orthodontic braces, along with buck teeth correction, overbite correction and deep bite correction can also be achieved. However, this is a long drawn procedure that usually requires two years for completion of treatment. It gives excellent results when the cause of buck teeth is only protruding teeth (that may have occurred due to habits like thumb sucking or mouth breathing) and not a protruding jaw.

When the cause of forwardly placed teeth is skeletal in nature, that is, due to a forwardly placed maxilla, then orthodontic treatment will not help in such cases. When the jaw is forwardly placed, then there is no choice but to go in for surgery. There are many surgical options, like purely overjet surgery or overjet and overbite surgery, wherein the maxillo-facial surgeon may take the maxilla and push it behind and/or take the mandible (lower jaw) and push it ahead. This usually gives very good and instant results. However, this treatment often needs to be supplemented with orthodontic treatment after the surgery.

This was all about why one should get buck teeth treated at the earliest and how to go about correcting this condition. This is a common condition that is seen in many teenagers and during growing up years. However, with a little bit of dental care and by visiting the orthodontist and getting your condition diagnosed, you can put those days of being called Bugs Bunny behind you.