Reviewed by Dr. Benjamin Wright, board-certified orthodontist
If you are the teenager reading this, you probably heard three words you were not thrilled about. Braces today are smaller, more comfortable, and far less noticeable than the ones your parents wore. Plenty of your classmates at Severna Park Middle and Severna Park High are in treatment right now, and most of them stopped thinking about it after the first couple of weeks.
If you are the parent, the question is usually timing and cost. Timing is what this page is about. Cost is covered on our cost, insurance, and financing page, including our in-house payment plans starting at $125 a month.
Why the Teen Years Are the Easiest Window?
Growth is the advantage. A teenager’s jaws are still developing, so we can guide how the upper and lower jaws meet rather than working around a finished bite. The baby teeth are gone and the permanent teeth have arrived, which means we can see the whole picture and correct it once.
Waiting is not a disaster. We treat adults every week, and results in adulthood are excellent. But adult bone has stopped growing, so certain bite corrections that are straightforward at fourteen become harder at thirty. If your teen needs treatment, this is the cheapest and simplest time to do it.
How Long Treatment Takes?
Every case is different, and we would rather give you a real estimate after an exam than a number off a web page. Three things drive the timeline.
- The first is what needs correcting. Straightening mild crowding is a different job from closing an open bite, and the plans do not take the same number of months.
- The second is biology. Teeth move at different speeds in different people, and that varies more than most families expect.
- The third is the patient. Elastics that get worn, appliances that stay intact, and appointments that get kept all shorten treatment.
Elastics left in a backpack lengthen it. That part is genuinely in your teen’s hands, and we say so plainly at the first visit rather than at the end.
Choosing an Appliance
Teenagers here have three options, and we will walk through which ones suit the case.
- Metal braces are the workhorse. They handle every kind of correction, they are the most durable option for an active teenager, and the built-in clip system helps guide the wire without elastic ties.
- Clear braces use ceramic brackets that blend against the tooth. They work similarly to metal braces and are much harder to notice in photos, while still using the same self-ligating clip system.
- Invisalign® clear aligners are removable, so nothing shows and there are no food restrictions. They depend entirely on wear time.
If a teenager will genuinely keep them in, they work beautifully. If not, fixed braces do the work whether anyone remembers them or not, and we will tell you honestly which category we think your case falls into.
School, Sports, and the Rest of Life
Appointments run every four to eight weeks. We schedule around the AACPS bell schedule and after-school practices wherever we can, and our office is a quarter mile up Jumpers Hole Road from Severna Park Middle School, so a visit does not eat an afternoon.
Braces do not sideline an athlete. A mouthguard protects both the teeth and the appliance, and we will help find one that fits over brackets. The first week takes some adjusting on the food side, which we cover on our life with braces page. If something breaks the night before a game, call us; that is what emergency care is for.
Frequently Asked Questions About Adolescent Orthodontic Treatment
Can I play sports with braces?
Yes, including contact sports. Wear a mouthguard designed to fit over braces, and ask us if you are not sure which one to buy. After any hit to the mouth, check your teeth and appliance and call us if anything feels loose or looks bent.
Can I still play a wind instrument with braces?
Yes. Brass and woodwind players usually need a week or two to adapt their embouchure, and orthodontic wax over the front brackets makes that stretch much easier. Marching band season and treatment coexist just fine.
Is high school too late to start braces?
Not at all. A sixteen-year-old still has active jaw growth and a full set of permanent teeth, which is a good starting point. Starting junior or senior year is common, and treatment can carry on through the transition to college with visits scheduled around breaks.
How do we fit appointments around school?
Tell us which days and times work and we will build the schedule around them. Adjustment visits are short, and we run on time, so most students miss part of a period rather than a day. Longer appointments can usually go early in the morning or on a school holiday.
Schedule a Complimentary Teen Consultation
Call 410-544-0072 or request an appointment online. Wright Orthodontics is at 479 Jumpers Hole Road, Suite #203, Severna Park, MD 21146, and we treat teens from Severna Park, Millersville, Crownsville, Arnold, Severn, and Pasadena. We also serve Cape St. Claire.