I have spaces and I hate them - what should I do?

Many people are bothered by spaces or gaps in their teeth. Even small spaces can be noticeable.

There are four main reasons for spaces:

  1. not all of the adult teeth are in yet
  2. small teeth
  3. the position of the teeth
  4. missing teeth

The first problem can be temporary until all of the adult teeth have come in. It is very common for teeth to be spaced before all of the adult teeth have come in to finish closing the spaces in the front. The upper eye teeth or fangs, the third teeth from the front, are often the last teeth to come in. They can be the final step in closing the spaces in the upper front teeth.

Small teeth are not unusual and they can lead to spaces. Closing the spaces in this case may involve no braces. Your dentist may be able to bond filling material or place veneers to enlarge the teeth to a more normal size to close the spaces. This may be able to be done without the need for braces. Or it may make sense to move the teeth into better positions first with braces and then your dentist can enlarge your teeth to complete space closure.

The position of the teeth can produce spaces even when the teeth are normal size. Upper teeth that are too far forward can be spaced as a result. Braces can move the teeth back to a better position and close those spaces.

Finally - missing teeth are pretty common as well. About 5% of us are missing at least one adult tooth - it never develops. Wisdom teeth are the most common missing ones, but the upper lateral incisors are the next most common teeth to be missing. These are the teeth beside the larger front teeth or central incisors as we dentists call them. Lots of people are missing one or both of these teeth and this will lead to spaces.

Treatment will usually involve braces to align the teeth to their proper position and to create space to replace the missing tooth. It usually looks much better to keep the space for the missing tooth although not always. In some cases, it can make sense to close the spaces without replacing the missing tooth.

Spaces are a common problem in orthodontics, but the good news is that there are number of options to deal with those spaces. I am happy to discuss the possibilities with you - to see if orthodontic treatment makes sense for you.