Orthodontics

What is Orthodontics?

Orthodontics is the speciality part of dentistry involved in the diagnosis and treatment of abnormal positional problems of the teeth and jaws eg crooked teeth, abnormal bites and small/large jaw sizes.

Who can provide orthodontic treatment?

Technically any dentist in the UK is permitted to ‘do’ orthodontics, provided that they practice within the limits of their training and competence. Since undergraduate training only exposes dental students to basic orthodontic theory and simple techniques, most orthodontics is provided by specialists. These are a minority of dentists who have undergone three years of full-time training in accredited university and hospital posts to become orthodontists. Their competence has been independently tested by rigorous Royal College of Surgeons examinations (recognised by the qualification letters MOrth RCS) before admittance to the General Dental Council's list of orthodontic specialists (www.gdc.org.uk).

A small proportion of orthodontists then undergo two further years of full-time training in specialised areas such as adult treatment, surgical management and cleft lip/palate care to qualify as consultant orthodontists, typically recognised by the additional qualification letters FDS(Orth) RCS.

For further information, check out the British Orthodontic Society website www.bos.org.uk.

Orthodontic Treatments

• Fixed Metal Braces
• Aesthetic (Tooth Coloured) Fixed Braces
• Rapid Treatments aka ‘Six Months Smile’
• Aligners
• Orthopaedic (‘functional’) appliances
• Orthodontic Mini-implant Anchorage
• Snoring Appliances

Orthodontic Fees

Orthodontics is a valuable investment and we aim to price this in a fair and transparent manner. In particular:

• All treatment aspects are included in the quoted fees - we don’t believe in charging extra for essential items such as x-rays and retainers since your treatment can’t be done properly without them!
• We don’t offer ‘free consultations’ - orthodontics requires a specialist clinical assessment, rather than a sales consultation for a specific commercial product or ‘quick-fix’. Indeed, professional regulations (www.gdc.org.uk) state that you should be given accurate information on all of your appropriate options, not just sold one form of treatment.

You will receive a personal quotation after your consultation.

Our baseline fee scale is:

Consultation appointment	£145
CBCT 3D x-ray	1 Jaw £130 | 2 Jaws £250
Fixed metal braces	£2450-3350*
Aesthetic (tooth-coloured) braces	£2100-3950*
Orthopaedic (growth modification) treatment	£2750-2850**
Clear aligner braces	£1200-3800*
Snoring appliances	£640

*depending on the complexity, although fees may be less for very limited treatment

** includes metal fixed brace phase