Space

Maintainers

Does my child need a space maintainer?

If your child has lost a baby tooth early, they may need a space maintainer. One of the purposes of baby teeth is to hold the space for the incoming adult teeth. If a baby tooth is lost early, then the space it was holding for the adult tooth could close, causing additional issues.

If you believe that your child may be a candidate for a space maintainer, we recommend that you bring your child in for an evaluation.

Space Maintainers

Types

of space maintainers

When considering space maintainers, it’s important that our doctors are able to evaluate the patient at one of our 8 locations to determine which maintainer is best for each individual case. The different types of maintainers are:

Unilateral – Band and Loop: This space maintainer is ideal if a child loses their primary 1st molar early. It maintains the space for the permanent tooth to come in.

Bilateral – Lower Lingual Holding Arch: This space maintainer can maintain space on both sides of the mouth for the eruption of permanent teeth. The bilateral space maintainer is ideal if a child loses their primary 2nd molar early.

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What happens if my child does not get a space maintainer but needs one?
If space is not maintained, the most likely result is crowding of the permanent teeth. When severe crowding occurs, permanent teeth may need to be extracted in order to make room to align all of the permanent teeth. Once space is lost, it may not be able to be regained without the extraction of permanent teeth. This is what makes space maintainers so important!

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Thank you for visiting our website! We encourage you to view the remainder of our website to find out more about what Fishbein Orthodontics has to offer. If you have any further questions about space maintainers, our Emerald Coast practice, or simply wish to book an appointment, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We look forward to seeing your smile at your first visit to our office!
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