At Synergy Orthodontics, we assess children for their first orthodontic consultation from age 7, as recommended by the Orthodontic Society of Ireland. At this stage, a Specialist Orthodontist can often identify developing bite or jaw concerns—even while some baby teeth are still present.
Not every child will need treatment, but early assessment allows us to detect issues and, where appropriate, guide growth to make future care simpler and more predictable.
Early orthodontic care focuses on identifying problems early and using growth to our advantage.
Benefits may include:
We commonly assess and treat children between 7 and 8 years of age for their first assessment, in line with what is recommended by the Orthodontic Society of Ireland. This provides an opportunity to assess your child’s smile and either monitor growth or intervene if apporpriate.
Some of the most common concerns we see in children include:
When a front tooth crossbite is present, the bite can place repeated traumatic forces on the teeth and gums. Over time, this may lead to:
Early assessment allows us to correct the bite before this trauma causes longer-term damage, often with simpler and more comfortable treatment. Not every child with these features needs immediate treatment — sometimes careful monitoring is the best approach.
During your child’s consultation, we will advise whether an expander, early aligner treatment, braces, careful monitoring or nothing at all is the most appropriate option based on their stage of dental development. Not everyone needs treatment and if there is a benefit we will inform you.
What may be recommended?
Palatal Expansion (Expanders)
A palatal expander is a fixed orthodontic appliance used to gently widen the upper jaw when it is narrow. Generally evidence shows that most effective expansion is carried out between 8 to 10. Because children’s jaws are still growing, expansion at this age is safe, effective and well tolerated. Palatal expansion can help:
Early Aligner Treatment
Aligners provide your child with an opportunity to start treatment earlier than braces, as they work very effectively alongside baby teeth, allowing us to begin guiding tooth position and jaw development before all adult teeth have erupted. In suitable cases, this can help correct problems earlier, simplify later treatment, and make the overall orthodontic journey smoother. Aligners are removable and require compliance (i.e. children need to wear them for 22 hours per day (all times except eating and drinking). In our experience young kids do the best as they tend to be much more compliant than teenagers and adults. Even if we treat someone with fixed braces, they still need to wear a removable retainer for the rest of their life, therefore getting into the mindset of wearing something removable from a young age can accelerate long term success as younger kids tend to adapt much better in comparison to kids when they are in secondary school. Creating space earlier also means that often permanent teeth come down in better positions than they would have otherwise therefore there is less orthodontics required when they older and we have had to move teeth less meaning they are less prone to relapse. Please see Angel Aligner section for more details.
What if my child has protruding front teeth or their lower jaw is setback?
Aligner Mandibular Advancement – Modern growth-guided treatment for children
At Synergy Orthodontics we embrace technology and work with the best aligner providers to provide your child with the best most seamless treatment. In selected growing children where the lower jaw is set back and top teeth significantly stick out over the bottom teeth, we may recommend Aligner mandibular advancement featured in your child’s aligners— a modern orthodontic approach designed to guide jaw growth while straightening the teeth at the same time. Kids who have protruding top teeth are also at a higher risk of trauma. Girls go through a growth spurt at age 11-13 and boys 12-14, treatment for patients with lower jaw setback is often completed either before or during this stage. If treated after the growth spurt then jaw correction is limited and more complex treatment such as jaw surgery may be needed for full correction.
This system is very different from the traditional block-style braces used in the past. With the old system (photo attached- it covered the palate, the child would wear this for 9-12 months and see no changes in the actual alignment of teeth and also would only have 1 block brace for the entire year. With the Aligner system we do not cover the palate, they get 2 sets of aligners per week (exact copies of each other so if they break or lose one they just use the other), and the biggest benefit- we can straighten teeth at the same time meaning the overall duration of treatment is often shorter. This is reassuring and motivating for your child also because they can see more of an improvement sooner in the alignment of the teeth.
Please see Dentofacial Orthopaedics section for more details.
| Aligner Mandibular Advancement (Modern improved approach) | Traditional block brace (older approach) |
A series of aligners, changed every week | Upper and lower bulky removable appliance (same appliance for 9-12 months) |
2 sets each week, if lose use the next aligner and wear it longer | 1 set, if lose replacement fee |
Does not cover the palate, improving comfort and speech; Slim, smooth and more comfortable | Covers the palate (roof of the mouth); Can feel bulky or restrictive |
Jaw improvement and tooth alignment happen together so overall treatment shorter | Jaw correction and tooth straightening done in separate stages, Usually 9-12 months first for block brace then braces are placed |
Removable aligners, easier brushing and hygiene | For braces phase- Fixed in place so more difficult to clean and diet restrictions |
Straightens teeth while guiding jaw growth | Does not straighten teeth at the same time |
Fewer appointments needed | Frequent in-practice adjustments |
Although a new aligner is worn each week, children are given a batch of aligners in advance, so they do not need to attend the practice weekly. Most children are reviewed every 8–12 weeks with aligners, helping to minimise time off school while still allowing careful monitoring of growth and progress.
This modern approach is gentler, more flexible and well suited to growing children, while still delivering predictable orthodontic and bite outcomes in appropriate cases. We also use remote monitoring so we can monitor your child every week without taking them out of school as much as they would need to otherwise.
Protect Your Child’s Smile
An early orthodontic consultation helps us understand your child’s growth, bite and dental development — and whether treatment is needed now or simply monitored over time or no treatment at all.
Book a consultation at Synergy Orthodontics, Dublin, to find out how early orthodontic care could support your child’s long-term dental health. Remember not everyone needs treatment. Knowledge is power and we want to educate and inform you about your child’s teeth and jaw development using Specialist expertise.
Book your consultation today
