How an Orthodontist Differs from a Dentist

Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics is one of the nine specialties recognized by the American Dental Association.  An orthodontist is a dental specialist who has graduated from dental school and been selected for and completed a two to three-year post-doctorate Master’s program and residency in the specialty.  Only graduates from such residencies may refer to themselves as orthodontists in the United States.

Orthodontists focus solely on correcting misaligned teeth and jaws using appliances such as aligners (Invisalign), precision braces, and specialty tools and techniques. They do not perform restorative or cosmetic dental procedures (e.g., fillings, crowns, implants, laminates).  This focus is required due to the complexity involved in accurate diagnosis and treatment planning for orthodontic cases and the resulting impact on the face and bite over the lifetime.

Orthodontics is distinctly different from the work on static teeth that is taught in dental school and the purview of general/aesthetic dentists. The required knowledge and skills for orthodontic treatment are unique. Post-doctoral orthodontic training includes comprehensive didactic and clinical education relating to the diagnosis, prevention, interception, and correction of malocclusion (misalignment of teeth) within the context of the facial musculoskeletal system. Training, therefore, covers guidance and correction of facial skeletal formation, i.e., dentofacial orthopedics.

An orthodontist is trained in dentofacial orthopedics and is, therefore, uniquely qualified to assess the facial formation of the growing child and the ongoing facial changes of the adult and provide treatment designed to influence facial formation and change for the purpose of improving appearance, occlusion, and oral health over the lifetime.

Treatment diagnosis and planning by a skilled orthodontist focuses on the face, not just the teeth, including the balance of facial bones and the impact of tooth placement on the soft tissues of the face, including lips, cheeks, and muscles, and their relationship to facial aesthetics.

The importance of classroom and clinical experience in graduate orthodontic training cannot be overstated because the education of general dentists in the United States does not include orthodontic education or clinical experience.

While attending the School of Dentistry at the University of Michigan (a leading program with a comprehensive curriculum), I was unable to even observe an active orthodontic patient during my four years of general dental training. The reasons for this situation include the lack of sufficient numbers of orthodontic patients to be treated by undergraduate dental students and the sheer amount of other clinical training necessary to prepare a student to function as a primary care dentist.

Through the clinical training of an orthodontic residency and private practice experience of completing over 8,000 orthodontic cases, I have not only gained an understanding of numerous orthodontic and dentofacial orthopedic approaches and appliances, but, more importantly, I have established a personal philosophy of diagnosis and treatment—a philosophy I share with you in the next section.