Ds 7 been referred to orthodontist

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For an underbite. Seems very early, I had braces in my teens but I'm sure it's all changed. will they do anything yet or wait until all the adult teeth are through?

Go and have the appointment.
The teeth aren't remotely important at this stage, any intervention at this stage is to realign his jaw bones and this is ESSENTIAL before his puberty, and his growth spurts associated with that.

They'll tweak and rearrange his teeth later in his teens but that's absolutely not important at this stage, his jaw bones are though.

You're lucky to be referred this early and you'll have a very good outcome for his bite and health if you act now.

Great, thank you

My dd1 has been seeing an orthodontist for an underbite. Her adult teeth started coming through before she was five so orthodontist treatment was needed quite early, from age eight I think. She is now 11 and treatment is almost complete, she just needs a retainer at nighttime. She has perfect teeth now.

If you are in the UK and get this treatment on the NHS, fantastic. We have had to pay thousands despite insurance.

Thanks kelda gosh that's a long time! Sorry to sound dim but how do they correct an underbite, what does the treatment involve? How do they realign jaw bones?

Wow, our dentist told us we wouldn't need a referral until most adult teeth were through - this is for my DS who is also 7. Perhaps I should double-check?
If you've got a referral, great, the orthodontist will presumably know the best/right time to start corrective work.

DD was referred at a similar age to yours. She had treatment up to the age of about 14 and now has fabulous teeth.

Just at the age when some of her friends were beginning their treatment, she was all done.

Plus as a pp said, to get this all on NHS is fantastic. It ain't cheap to go private, and I speak from experience as DS's treatment cost a few thousand (admittedly, his treatment was not as necessary as DD's and so not eligible for NHS).

For my dd it was the best case scenario - first a palatial expander which pushed the front teeth forwards slightly, next were fixed braces top and bottom, and lastly the retainer at night time.

She had her adult teeth very early hence the treatment from a young age, but not as young as seven.

Thanks useful to be pre-armed. Yes, we will go with whatever they suggest. He has 4 adult teeth at the front but also 3 higgledy ones coming through behind.
The dentist who referred him didn't believe me that he'd never had a dummy, she asked me ++ times in various ways

I just googled palatial expander. Looks...painful? found this useful article too

Damn cant link on phone

No the palate expander isn't sore. One of my dcs has one and it's very well tolerated.
Best to have to done before the growth spurt, I.e. ASAP.
Don't hang about.

We paid over 6K£! again not covered on insurance, so be thankful it's offered so early on the NHS!

Take it with both hands!

Agree with VenusRising, some of the treatment was uncomfortable for a day or two but nothing too bad.

We took DS1 privately to an orthodontist just when he was 7yo because he had a high narrow palate, caused by a posterior tongue tie which had gone undiagnosed until then.

His lower jaw was already bigger than the top one and he could not put his bottom teeth behind his top ones and it was clear that there was not going to be enough room for his adult teeth.

His tongue tie was revised and he began wearing braces and headgear to expand his palate and draw out his upper jaw and mid section of his face.

This also opened up his nostrils and stopped the mouth breathing which had probably been the cause of the underbite. He stopped snoring and grinding and his sleep became much more peaceful.

2 years on, he is just wearing the braces at night as a retainer and we are waiting to see how his adult teeth end up before deciding if he needs fixed braces.

Without this early intervention, he would certainly have been looking at multiple extractions, possibly jaw surgery, who knows.

I have tried to post a picture of his braces, not sure if it will work! They didn't hurt and worked very gently to guide the growth of his jaws.

I am absolutely delighted with the results and know that it was 100% worth every single penny.

DD2 was referred quite young (I think she was about 8). She had an initial appointment, they took some pics, did an assessment, then said "see you in a couple of years". She is now 11 and only had braces fitted a couple of months ago.