Step 1. Growth and eruption assessment
We evaluate your child's tooth eruption, jaw development, and facial growth pattern. Because growing teeth and jaws move relatively easily, identifying the right timing lets growth itself do part of the work.
Orthodontic Center
Children's Orthodontics in Korea | Growth-Stage Treatment for Kids
In growing children, late tooth eruption or jaw irregularities can affect how the facial bones develop, so early treatment is often beneficial. Please note honestly: growth-stage orthodontics requires regular in-person visits over an extended period, so it is realistic mainly for families living in Korea or staying long term - not for short medical-travel trips.
Final treatment plan, cost and duration are confirmed after in-clinic diagnosis.
Quick Answer
Children's orthodontics uses the natural flexibility of growing teeth and jaws to guide development - correcting problems such as crossbites, crowding from early baby-tooth loss, and jaw growth imbalances. Appliances like headgear, face masks, and activators are chosen for each child's growth pattern. Treatment is paced to the child's growth and requires regular visits, making it best suited to families based in Korea.
Who it fits
Patient concerns this page answers
- Your child's jaws seem misaligned and mouth movements look unnatural when chewing or speaking.
- Baby teeth were lost early due to cavities and the permanent teeth are coming in crooked.
- The lower jaw is growing fast and the lower face looks increasingly prominent.
- The upper and lower front teeth hit each other and the gums are starting to recede.
Process
From photo consultation to in-clinic diagnosis
Step 2. Headgear - guiding tooth and jaw position
Headgear adjusts the position of the teeth and jaws and is used for conditions such as protrusion, prominent lower jaw, or a retruded chin, depending on the child's growth direction.
Step 3. Face mask - encouraging upper jaw growth
A face mask promotes growth of the upper jaw while restraining the lower jaw, and is used to treat underbite (prominent lower jaw) during the growth period - a correction that is much harder once growth is complete.
Step 4. Activator - guiding the lower jaw forward
When the upper jaw grows faster than the lower, an activator guides lower-jaw growth to treat a retruded chin, helping the jaws meet in better balance as the child grows.
Step 5. Monitoring through the growth period
Treatment is paced to your child's individual growth, with regular visits to check progress. Dental problems that arise during growth - cavities, eruption issues - are addressed at the same time rather than left for later.
Care system
How this center cares for patients
An honest note for international families
Children's growth-stage orthodontics is not a one-trip treatment. Appliances must be adjusted as the child grows, which means regular in-person visits over months to years. We recommend this treatment for families residing in Korea or staying long term. If you are visiting briefly, we can examine your child and share findings you can take to a local orthodontist, but we will not start a treatment we cannot properly supervise.
Treatment paced to your child's growth
Orthodontics applies controlled force to bring teeth and jaws toward their proper position. In growing children, teeth and jaws move comparatively easily, so Today Dental paces treatment to each child's growth - and handles growth-related dental problems alongside the orthodontic work.
Specialists from multiple fields watch over your child
Board-certified specialists at Today Dental diagnose and manage cases together, so a child's orthodontic plan is reviewed with eyes on cavities, eruption, and gum health - not orthodontics in isolation.
Patient stories
Treatment case references
Before
After
2023.11.14 - 2024.12.31
✓ 01Case point
Children's orthodontic case, Bucheon clinic: crowding with an ectopically erupting front tooth, photographed after treatment. Individual results vary.
Before
After
2023.06.21 - 2024.09.07
✓ 02Case point
Children's orthodontic case, Bucheon clinic: front-teeth bite relationship corrected during the growth period, photographed after treatment. Individual results vary.
Final treatment plan, cost and duration are confirmed after in-clinic diagnosis.
FAQ
Questions Patients Ask
At what age should my child first see an orthodontist?→
There is no single right age - it depends on the problem. Issues involving jaw growth benefit from evaluation while growth can still be guided, which is why early assessment matters even if active treatment starts later. An examination will tell you whether to treat now, monitor, or wait.
We are an expat family in Korea. Can our child be treated here?→
Yes - families living in Korea are exactly who this treatment suits. Growth-stage orthodontics needs regular visits, typically over an extended period, so plan around your expected length of stay. If you may relocate mid-treatment, tell us at the consultation: we will plan phases accordingly and prepare records for a smooth handover to an orthodontist in your next country.
Will early treatment mean my child never needs braces later?→
Not necessarily, and we will not promise that. Early treatment guides jaw growth and can reduce the severity of later problems, but some children still need alignment treatment after their permanent teeth come in. The benefit of the early phase is creating better conditions - it does not guarantee that a second phase will never be needed.
Latest Blog Posts
Latest Blog Posts
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