Last week when I brought Dylan to his dentist visit, the dentist noticed that he has an underbite. We had noticed the underbite at the last visit, and the dentist is not concerned about it at this point because Dylan is still so young and his teeth are still coming in. The thing that I found interesting, though, is that the dentist asked me whether there is any family history of underbites.
I know that it is important to know whether others in my family have high blood pressure, cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and the like but I did not know that it was important to know whether anyone has or had an underbite. My reply to the dentist in response to his question was that I did not know, but that I would find out. I know that I have an overbite, but it is not anything that treatment has ever been suggested for. I called my mom today to see whether she knew of anything like that, and apparently her mother did have an underbite and did have surgery for it at some point in time.
I’ll have to inquire about my husband’s side of the family, too, because I have no idea whether anyone on that side has an underbite. No matter what the family history is, I am certainly glad that the dentist is keeping tabs on the situation closely because an underbite can place individuals at risk for Tempero – mandibular Joint Disorder (TMJ). The good news is that underbites can be corrected if they do not correct themselves, and that there is a high degree of successful treatment of underbites in young children. Of course, I am hoping that the situation will correct itself so that no intervention is needed.
Until last week, I had no idea that underbites were connected to family history. I am still a little confused as to whether it matters whether the underbite came from a genetic tendency or of it simply just happened. I am sure that I will learn more as the situation progresses, as well as when Blake starts to get teeth and we are able to see what his bite looks like.