Journal of Clinical Trials
Open Access

Abstract

Malocclusion: Role of Health Care Providers in Early Diagnosis

Sankalp Sood, Sachin Sood, KS Negi, Jai Ram Kaundal and Kapil R Sharma

Oral health care is recommended in young children to promote positive outcomes during childhood and later as an adult. Health care providers are often the ones who are first approached by the parents for various problems and therefore they are in an ideal and unique position, to advise families about the prevention of malocclusion. By enriching their knowledge about orofacial growth, health care providers may enhance the implementation and eventual success of oral health preventive programme. This paper describes most common and distinctive symptoms appearing frequently in the early stages of a child’s development that are easily detectable by clinicians. Though malocclusion is of multifactorial origin, some recognized behaviors should be discouraged to allow for ideal craniofacial development and require early referral to the pediatric dentist or orthodontist. Some easily diagnosed disorders include different sucking habits persisting beyond 3 years of age, mouth breathing and significant deviations from established teeth eruption norms.