What is a Malocclusion?
The word “malocclusion” is derived from ‘Mal’ meaning bad and ‘0cclusion’ meaning bite. This is another word for “bad bite.” Many malocclusions are inherited. For example, if your father has large teeth and your mother has a small jaw, then you could possibly inherit a jaw that is too small to support large teeth. Bad habits like fingernail biting, tongue thrusting (pushing the tongue against the teeth), thumb sucking or mouth breathing could also cause malocclusion because they put steady pressure on the teeth and jaws and move them out of line. Teeth and jaws aren’t as motionless as you might think. There are two kinds of malocclusions. The most common is the skeletal malocclusion, where one jaw overlaps the other; a discrepancy between the upper and lower jaws. The other kind is a dental malocclusion which occurs when the teeth are out of alignment: (turned, crowded, spaced) but the jaws are lined up underneath one another.
Malocclusion is a technical term for crooked, crowded or protruding teeth that do not fit together properly. These problems may be inherited or acquired. Common malocclusions include crowding of teeth, prominent teeth, too much space between teeth, extra or missing teeth and a variety of irregularities of the jaws and face. Thumb sucking, tongue thrusting, dental disease, premature loss of primary or permanent teeth, or accidents can cause malocclusions.
It may be a new word to you. “Malocclusion” is a technical term for crooked, crowded or protruding teeth which do not fit together properly. Literally, the word means “bad bite.” Most malocclusions are inherited. These include crowding of teeth, too much space between teeth, extra or missing teeth, cleft palate and a variety of irregularities of the jaws and face. Some malocclusions are acquired. They can be caused by thumb-sucking, tongue thrusting, dental disease, premature loss of primary or permanent teeth, accidents or some medical problems. Left untreated, these orthodontic problems can become worse. Crooked and crowded teeth are hard to clean and maintain. This may contribute to conditions that may cause tooth decay, eventual gum disease and tooth loss. A bad bite can also cause abnormal wear of tooth surfaces, difficulty in chewing and excess stress of the supporting bone and gum tissue.
Malocclusion literally means bad bite. Most malocclusions are inherited and it is possible to develop a bad bite as a result of bad habits such as tongue thrusting, thumb sucking and sleeping habits. The premature loss of baby teeth or the extraction of adult teeth can also cause the development of a malocclusion. Some early warning signs of a bad bite are: difficulty in chewing or biting, mouth breathing, finger sucking or other oral habits beyond age five, overlapped, misplaced or blocked-out teeth, biting the cheek or into the roof of the mouth, teeth that meet in an abnormal manner or do not meet at all, jaws that shift or make sounds, jaws that protrude, retrude or contribute to facial asymmetry or imbalance, and finally speech difficulty.
