Invisalign® is the household name for clear aligner treatment. It is known as the number one premium brand. In recent years the cost of Invisalign has become prohibitive and is opening the door to other brands of clear aligners in Australia. Angel® Aligner is recognised as a more affordable option, however this is not a “cheap” or inferior option by any means. We have found numerous benefits to using Angel® Aligner including being more stain resistant, more comfortable attachment appointments, faster more accurate tracking decreasing overall treatment time, and the lower price is just a bonus! This has become our specialists preferred clear aligner system to work with, and is quickly being adopted by specialists across the country. We continue to offer Invisalign® for brand conscious patients.

Teeth straightening might seem straightforward, but there’s far more to it than meets the eye! It's not just about having straight teeth; the alignment of your teeth and jaws plays a big role in the overall appearance of your face. Proper planning combines aesthetics, function, and safety—like how quickly we can safely move your teeth and how far they can shift without exposing the roots. Unfortunately, many patients come to us needing correction due to relapse or an unsatisfactory results. Relapse is most often due to inadequate or no retention, and in some cases due to an untreated underlying habit such as tongue thrusting or thumb sucking. The goal is to place your teeth in a way that enhances your smile by making them optimally visible while supporting the soft tissues of your lips and cheeks. Straightening teeth without considering all of these factors can compromise the aesthetics and the long-term results. Understanding these complexities is key, which is why we have smile experts collaborating with one of Australia’s leading orthodontists to ensure you get the very best results.

Orthodontic treatment can be done at any age, but the prime time to start is during the adolescent growth spurt, which usually occurs in the early teens. This growth peak typically happens between ages 11-14 and is slightly earlier for girls than boys. During this time, the body is still growing, making it easier to guide teeth and jaws into their optimal positions. This is also the ideal timing for growth modification, in most cases, where required.

Early intervention is crucial in certain cases, but not every child needs it. The key conditions where early treatment is beneficial include:

• Cross-bite with facial asymmetry or damage to permanent teeth: Early correction can prevent long-term issues with facial balance and tooth damage.
• Class III malocclusion (underbite): Addressing this early can significantly improve outcomes.
• Traumatic deep bite: If lower teeth are pressing into the palate, early correction is important to prevent further damage.
• Space maintenance: If a child loses their primary molars (E’s) early, maintaining space for permanent teeth is crucial.
• Space creation: Early space creation can help with the eruption of permanent teeth.
• Excessive spacing due to supernumerary teeth: Closing these gaps early can prevent future orthodontic challenges.
• Psychological distress due to teasing: If your child is experiencing teasing because of their teeth, early treatment can help boost their confidence.

Timing is Everything

Early treatment for growth modification is generally not recommended (aside from underbite correction and facial asymmetry). Early gains in growth modification often revert during puberty, leading to the need for a second round of treatment. Extending treatment can become costly and increase the risk of treatment burnout, where a child might refuse treatment during the most critical years for precision corrections.

Crowding, Deep Palates, & Palatal Expanders

For children who need expansion due to crowding and deep narrow palates, we recommend fixed maxillary expansion appliances. While removable appliances can create space, they often do so by tilting the teeth, which isn’t ideal. Genuine palatal expansion, which is more stable and effective, can only be achieved with a fixed appliance. Since there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution, our specialist will select the best appliance for your child’s unique needs.

Let's clear up what "natural" really means when it comes to straightening teeth. The idea typically involves “myofunctional” exercises to strengthen and coordinate the muscles of the lips, cheeks, and tongue, which some claim will help improve tooth position without the use of any appliances. However, if an appliance is involved, it’s no longer considered “natural”—despite what some might advertise when marketing generic removable devices as “natural” solutions.

We do not support or promote natural teeth straightening. The reason? There’s simply no reliable or safe way to achieve predictable results. Instead, we trust our specialist orthodontist to handle teeth straightening and growth modification in children using evidence-based practices. This approach ensures that tooth movement is precise, controlled, and tailored to each patient’s unique needs.

Generic, non-custom appliances that claim to offer "natural" teeth straightening are costly, often have low compliance, and for the complaint patients, this lack of precision treatment can be risky and lead to serious complications. When it comes to your smile, we believe in doing things the right way—safely and effectively, with results you can count on.

Growth modification involves changing the shape, size, position, length or width of the jawbone(s) through the use of various appliances such as palatal expanders, twin blocks, or headgear. This can only possible while the bones are still growing, and the optimal timing, in most cases, is during the adolescent growth peak. However, there are exceptions to this timing rule. If a patient needs growth modification to correct an underbite (class III malocclusion) or a cross-bite with facial asymmetry, we do treat early in these cases to ensure the best outcomes.

Growth modification is all about guiding or adjusting the natural growth patterns of the jaws, when required, to achieve a more balanced facial structure. The mandible, or lower jaw, grows by bone deposition in the condylar region (TMJ), moving down and forward. If there is a misdirection of this growth, the face can become too long or too short. A vertical growth pattern can lead to a "long face," while horizontal growth results in a "short face."

After the major growth phase ends in the late teens, altering growth patterns is no longer possible, limiting correction to tooth movement only—not bone adjustments. This means that if jaw size needs modification, timing is crucial. Missing the optimal treatment window can restrict future orthodontic options, potentially leading to surgery or accepting a less-than-ideal result.

Excessive display of the gums on smiling can sometimes be an aesthetic concern. This can be caused by any of the structures that define the smile from the lips, to the teeth, to the jaws, or the gums. More specifically this may involve a lip that is too short or ‘incompetent’, a lip that is hyper mobile (moves excessively high on smiling), a maxilla (upper jaw) that is long called Vertical Maxillary Excess, teeth which sit too low, or gums which are enlarged due to a number of reasons such as poor OH, certain medications, mouth breathing, pregnancy, and/or genetics.

Treatment for gummy smile depends on the severity and whether the source of the issue is derived from the teeth / lips / jaws / gums. Teeth straightening alone is rarely sufficient to correct a gummy smile. As the severity of the gummy smile increases we tend to use two or more treatments as very often severe cases have more than one cause.

Treatments include:

• Orthodontic treatment (Invisalign or braces) with or without *Temporary Anchorage Devices (TADs),
• Botox
• Gum sculpting (gingivectomy) / crown lengthening
• Surgical intervention with a maxillary osteotomy (LeForte 1)

To avoid a maxillary osteotomy, which is an extensive operation, patients typically prefer a more conservative combination approach and accept the gains achieved. On the bright side, as we age the face drops so gummy smiles do minimise naturally with time and those with gummy smiles tend to look youthful into old age! Be very cautious adding lip fillers as they can improve gummy smile but in some cases they can worsen gummy smile depending on the technique used.

*Not all dentists/orthodontists use TADs so ensure you are seeing someone that can use these beneficial tools.

Children can often present with gummy smiles. We always need to be mindful that children naturally go through a mixed dentition phase and several growth spurts which drastically alters their occlusion with time. As their jaws grow this often allows the teeth to straighten naturally. Very often we monitor children into their teenage years and we end up with a stunning set of pearly whites without the need for treatment. Of course, there are some cases that benefit from early treatment and we work closely with our specialist to ensure children are receiving the very best treatment.

Well that’s a mouth full! So what is it exactly? An OMD describes abnormal muscular movement(s) in the face and mouth affecting function such as eating/speaking/swallowing/and breathing. Incorrect muscular function can affect dentofacial development so it is important to assess and address disorders as early as possible.

The position of our teeth is largely governed by the surrounding soft tissues which include the lips, cheeks, and tongue; and for our developing young ones we shouldn’t forget the influence of thumbs, dummies, tongue thrusts, and mouth breathing which all effect the position of the teeth.

Mouth breathing, drooling, messy eating, lisping, or poor tongue posture (thrusting or tongue-tie) are all signs there may be a myofunctional disorder. Chronic mouth breathing can be caused from any restriction in the airway from an inability to breath through the nose which may be anatomical or allergy-induced, or restricted breathing due to enlarged tonsils, poor tongue positioning in the floor of the mouth, or a short ‘incompetent’ lip that prevents the lips from closing.

We evaluate whether there is a medical or anatomical basis to the OMD. A complete evaluation sometimes requires referral to an ENT, sleep specialist, immunologist, or orthodontist. Once airway issues are treated or ruled out, we then refer to a Speech-Language Pathologist who provides the needed training in the areas of chewing, swallowing, speaking, and breathing patterns.