Understanding Overbites and Overjets: The Difference and Their Treatments
Hi, I'm Dr. Jacobs. Today, I want to take a moment to talk about a topic that comes up quite often during consultations. The topic is overbite.
What is an overbite?
An overbite is a type of misalignment of your teeth where the upper teeth significantly overlap the lower teeth. While it is completely normal to have a slight overbite, more pronounced cases can lead to a variety of issues if left untreated. For example, if you bite down and do not see any of your lower teeth, it is called a 100% overbite. That can have bad consequences because when you chew and your jaw moves side to side, you hit your upper teeth and damage your front teeth. You'll see chipping and flaking of your teeth, which can lead to a lot of damage.
If you bite down and only see half of your bottom teeth, that is a 50% overbite. If you bite down and see 80% of your teeth, that is a 20% overbite. So the overbite is how much of your upper tooth hides the lower tooth. If it hides it all the way, it's a 100% overbite. If it hides none of it, it's a 0% overbite.
What is an overjet?
Sometimes people think the buckiness of their upper teeth is the overbite, and that is not true. If your upper teeth are too far out or your lower teeth are too far in towards your throat, that is called an overjet, and that can also have significance. It is mostly, not always, but mostly a function of your jaw. If your jaw is too far back, you have a big overjet. Sometimes, not to confuse the issue, it is called a type two malocclusion, meaning your jaw is too far back. That can have a lot of problems too. It makes your teeth on the upper look bucky when it's not. It can cause a lot of TMJ problems, including clicking, popping, and pain when you chew. It can cause a lot of sleeping problems because remember, your tongue is attached to your throat and your jaw. If your jaw is too far back, your tongue blocks your throat.
How to treat an overbite?
It is very important to know what the proper overbite is and have it treated because it can cause and will cause, over time, tooth damage. Most overbites are corrected when you're younger by simply doing orthodontic treatment. You can have traditional metal braces done, or you can have modern aligners done. There are lots of name brands out there with aligners, but both are easily used to treat these cases.
In the event that you have tooth damage already, meaning your teeth are worn, often the best way to treat them is to have dentistry done, meaning crowns and fillings. But again, you want to get this when you're young so you don't have to do any tooth treatment. Unfortunately, we see this in advanced stages and older people where extensive dentistry is needed in order to correct this, and if left untreated, it just gets worse. So it is important to get this treated.
Can an overjet be treated without surgery?
If your jaw is too far back, believe it or not, often it can be very simply treated without surgery. I know there's a lot of people out there who have been told surgery is the only way to correct it, but that is actually not true. There are many orthodontic devices out there that will position your jaw forward.
A simple test at home is to bite down. If your jaw is too far back, you can stand in front of the mirror and bring your jaw forward. Just bring your jaw forward. If you can bring your jaw forward, it can be corrected without surgery. It's an appliance. All it does is position your jaw forward. Your muscles will adjust to that new position, and over time, about six months, you will actually be able to take the appliance out and you will not be able to push your jaw back to where it was at one point. It's amazing to see that your muscles will reorient and adjust to your new jaw position. Your bite may not be right, but believe it or not, your teeth will self-correct. The body is amazing, and your teeth will actually erupt until the teeth touch.
Overbites VS Overjets
- An overbite is how much of your bottom teeth show when you bite down.
- An overjet can be seen from profile. If your jaw is too far back and your upper teeth, in other words, if you can put your thumb between the back of your front teeth when you bite down, that's an overjet.
You can measure that in millimeters, how much of an overjet you have. A lot of things can cause an overjet. If it's not a real overjet, meaning your upper teeth are where they need to be, it's your jaw that is too far back. If your jaw is not too far back, there are certain habits that can make your upper teeth flare out. One of the big ones is thumb sucking. So it is important if your child is sucking their thumb that it be corrected, and there are a lot of devices that can fix that. If you don't fix it during their growing years, you can have a big deformity as an adult that is more difficult to correct. It is important to realize that certain things like thumb sucking can deform your maxilla as your child is developing.
Thank you so much for spending a little time with me today to learn about overbite and overjet. Whether it's something you just started to notice or something you've been dealing with for a while, it's important to know you are not alone. There are effective personalized solutions out there just for you.
If you're curious about your own bite or want to explore what's possible, I'm here to help. You can reach us at (951) 904-3164, or schedule below!