What is the best age for us to see your child for their first orthodontic consultation? There are some patients who would benefit from being seen at a young age, so that "early" interceptive treatment can be used to alleviate or correct developing problems. For example, if we see a patient who has a thumb-sucking habit, when their permanent front teeth begin to erupt (approximately 6 years old), we can often reverse the orthodontic problem with timely orthodontic intervention. Patients with overcrowding can often be helped if seen at a young age, so that the need for later extraction of permanent teeth may possibly be avoided. The use of a child's facial growth to help correct bite problems is often needed. So it's important to see your child when they are young, even though, in some cases, we may advise waiting before starting treatment. Apart from thumb-sucking or "underbite" patients (whom we like to see at about 6 years of age), we usually prefer to see our patients for their first consultation at approximately 8 or 9 years of age, in case they would benefit from "early" interceptive orthodontic treatment. However, active comprehensive orthodontic treatment (often involving braces), is often best carried out just BEFORE the patient's pubertal growth spurt (girls about 11-12 years of age, boys about 12-13 years of age) -- hopefully the patient has by then erupted their permanent teeth.