Is your child ready for braces?
The first orthodontic look is due when the adult front teeth start coming through, or sooner if you notice something. Answer seven one-tap questions and see straight away whether it is still early, a good time for a look, or worth an examination soon. Only an exam can tell.
Hours: Sat–Wed 10–6 · Thu 10–4 · Fri closed
Seven questions, an instant result
Each question is one tap, none of them is required, and any answer can be cleared. The result shows under the questions and updates with every answer; it is sharpest once you’ve answered the age and adult front teeth questions. We don’t ask for a name or a number, and your answers are never saved or sent to us.
The tool works when JavaScript is turned on in your browser. Without it, the three possible results and what to watch for each are below the questions, with how the result is worked out.
Answer any question and your result appears here straight away.
Answer your child’s age and the adult front teeth question so we can tell you about timing.
The three possible results:
Still early: keep an eye on these
From your answers, your child is under six, the adult front teeth have not started coming through, and there is no sign that needs hurrying. Carry on with regular check-ups, and watch for these:
What to watch
- When the adult front teeth start coming through: that is the time for a first orthodontic look.
- Sucking a thumb or a dummy: if it carries on a lot past about 3 to 4.
- The bite: lower teeth closing in front of the upper ones, or a gap between the front teeth when they bite.
- A baby tooth lost very early, to decay or a knock.
A good time for an early orthodontic look
From your answers, a first orthodontic look is due: for your child’s age, because the teeth have started to change over, or for a sign worth a look. This is the time for a calm orthodontic check-up, and a check-up is not a commitment to treatment: most children need nothing but monitoring.
What to watch
- The new adult teeth: coming in tilted, one behind another, or a tooth that has not come through where it should.
- As they close their mouth: sliding the jaw sideways or forward.
- A baby tooth lost early, or an adult tooth coming through behind a baby tooth that is still in place.
Worth an examination soon
There is a sign where timing matters in a child. It does not mean braces for certain, but it is better seen in the coming weeks, not next year.
What to watch
- Tell us at the examination everything you have noticed, and since when.
- Bring any old dental x-rays you have.
And from your answers in particular:
- Lower teeth in front of the upper: sometimes the cause is a small upper jaw rather than a large lower one. This is exactly where the timing of treatment matters in a child.
- A bite off to one side, or the jaw sliding sideways: that is a crossbite, and left alone it can cause uneven wear on the teeth over time. Correcting it is one of the treatments where timing matters in a child.
- Nine or older and the adult front teeth not through yet: that is slower than usual, and an examination, with an x-ray if needed, shows what is under the gum.
- Upper teeth well ahead: the cause can be the teeth themselves or the jaw, and the examination tells the two apart.
- A gap between the front teeth when biting: a known effect of sucking that carries on, and worth a look.
- Clear crowding: worth a look, because the new teeth have not found enough room.
- A little crowding: it sometimes improves on its own as the rest of the teeth come through, so just keep an eye on it.
- A baby tooth lost early, or an adult tooth coming in behind a baby tooth: in the first case the teeth beside the gap can lean into it, and sometimes the space needs holding; in the second, the baby tooth has not made way for the adult one. Both are worth a look.
- Sucking that carries on: it can push the upper front teeth forward and narrow the upper jaw. Many children stop with encouragement and calm talk, not punishment.
- Mouth breathing or snoring: the cause is often in the nose or the tonsils, which is for your child’s doctor or an ear, nose and throat doctor. But it can go with a narrow upper jaw, so mention it at the examination.
This is a first reading, not a diagnosis. Only an exam can tell.
If there is pain or a knock to the mouth, call now rather than wait for an appointment.
How the result is worked out
- “Worth an examination soon” if: the lower front teeth close in front of the upper ones, or the bite is off to one side or the jaw slides sideways on closing, or your child is nine or older and the adult front teeth are not through yet, or there are two signs or more, or the adult front teeth have started coming through together with clear crowding, upper teeth well ahead, a gap when biting or sucking that carries on.
- “A good time for an early orthodontic look” if none of the above applies, and your child is six or older, or the adult front teeth have started coming through, or there is one sign.
- “Still early: keep an eye on these” only if your child is under six, the adult front teeth have not started coming through, and there is no sign. If you haven’t answered the age or the front teeth question, we ask you to answer them rather than say “still early”.
- A “not sure” about the adult front teeth counts as started from age six, and as not started under six.
- The six signs: clear crowding, upper teeth well ahead, a gap between the front teeth when biting, sucking that carries on, mouth breathing or snoring, a baby tooth lost early or an adult tooth coming in behind a baby tooth. “A little crowding” on its own does not raise the result, and a question you leave unanswered does not count.
What next
The result tells you about timing, not about your child’s teeth. The examination does that: the doctor looks at the teeth and the bite from the front and both sides, sees which adult teeth are through and which are still to come, and takes an x-ray if needed.
- If it said “still early”: carry on with regular check-ups and watch the things listed in the result. If anything changes, answer the questions again.
- If it said “a good time”: book a calm assessment. An assessment is not a commitment to treatment, and most children need nothing but monitoring.
- If it said “worth an examination soon”: book in the coming weeks, not next year. Bring what you have noticed, and any old dental x-rays.
The full picture, the signs, the stages and the commitment, is on the braces for children and teenagers page. On gaps and crowding: gaps and crowded teeth in children. On sucking habits: thumb-sucking and dummies.
Questions people ask
Is the result a diagnosis?
No. It is a first reading from a fixed rule, written out under the tool as “How the result is worked out”. The tool cannot see your child’s teeth, so it cannot say what is going on. It only tells you whether it is still early, a good time for a look, or worth an examination soon. Only an exam can tell.
What happens to my answers?
Nothing. The tool runs on your device, does not save your answers, and not a single one reaches us. If you tap “Send the result on WhatsApp”, the message opens ready on your side, and you decide whether to send it.
When should I first bring my child in for an orthodontic look?
When the adult front teeth start coming through, or sooner if you notice something. For most children that is at about 6 to 7 years old, but there is no single age that fits every child. If your child already comes to us for regular check-ups, the growth of the jaw and the teeth coming through are looked at every time. More on the braces for children and teenagers page.
The result said “still early”, but I’m worried. Should I wait?
No, there is no need to wait if something is bothering you. Worry on its own is reason enough for an examination. The result describes the usual timing, not your child in particular.
Pages that go with this one
This tool gives a first reading, not a diagnosis, and it runs only on your device: it does not save your answers, and nothing from it reaches us.