FAQ

Having crooked teeth or a misaligned bite can affect more than how your smile looks. Severely crowded dentition is more difficult to clean, and may result in higher risk of cavities and gum disease. Other common malocclusion such as crossbite and deepbite can cause uneven wear to the teeth and extra stress to the jaw joint. Check out our Orthodontics page for more information.

An orthodontist is a dentist who has so much passion and love in the art of moving teeth, they spend 2-3 more years in specialty school to learn the knowledge and skill in orthodontics. Additionally, they need to pass the rigorous national board examination (The Royal College of Dentists of Canada, National Dental Specialty Examination) in order to become a certified specialist in Canada. Finally, because a certified orthodontist usually will limit his or her practice to orthodontics only, they have much more experience in diagnosing malocclusion and providing treatments than a family dentist.

Whether a case can be treated by a family dentist depends on the complexity of the malocclusion and the experience and training of the family dentist. Many family dentists have great interest in orthodontics and will take courses to obtain knowledge and experience in providing braces treatment. In fact, the orthodontists at PacificWest Dental have hosted many study clubs to help our family dentist colleagues learn about orthodontics.

You should ask your family dentist what kind of training he or she has in orthodontics, if he or she treated cases like yours before, and does he or she have photos of the case that he has completed to show you. We will be more than happy to provide you with a second opinion if you have any questions about your teeth!

Orthodontic treatment is suitable for people of all ages, whether young or old. Starting from the age of 7, we recommend taking your child to visit us so that we can monitor his or her teeth and jaw growth, and keep an eye out for potential problems. Learn more about our approach here.

Braces work by gently pulling and pushing the teeth to guide them into alignment. The real working horse in this process is the wire. Think of your teeth as a set of trains; braces are the wheels on the train, and the wire is the rail. It is the wire that guides the teeth where to go.

But how does the physical force from the wire actually make teeth move? Teeth are suspended in the bone by a collection of ligaments. When teeth are under pressure, these ligaments are squashed, and they release signals to call for cells (osteoclast) to come to remove the bone surround them (so they could become unsquashed).  After the teeth have moved into new position, another type of cell (osteoblast) will come to build new bones around the teeth to secure it in the new position. And this is how braces work to move your teeth!

At the initial consultation, we want to understand your needs and provide you with treatment options. In order to do this, we will need your medical and dental history, and any questions you may have!

This is the million dollar question! The cost of braces is based on several factors like the complexity of your case, how long treatment will take and which type of appliances you choose (metal braces, clear braces, Invisalign® or lingual braces). And because each patient receives a different treatment plan customized to his or her need, the cost will also be different.

Rest assured that during the consultation with Dr. Wang and Dr. Lee, financial figures will be discussed in depth. At PacificWest Dental Group, we work together with our patients to ensure treatment is affordable and payment options are flexible. We offer interest-free financing and accept cash, cheque, Visa, MasterCard, and debit.

Insurance plan coverage varies greatly, so we recommend asking your provider what your coverage includes. We will provide you the total cost of your treatment before your first appointment so you can determine your cost after your insurance coverage.

We do not direct bill to your insurance provider, but provide you with receipts and invoices so you can successfully process your claims.