Protrusive Upper Teeth Correction / Only the Lower Teeth Show When Smiling. Can Upper Front Tooth Exposure Be Corrected Too?

Hello,

Apgujeong Orthodontic Clinic

This is Apgujeong Yonsei Baro Dental Clinic.

Today, we’ll introduce protrusive upper teeth correction.

Q1. Why do protrusive upper teeth happen?

A. In many cases, the front teeth are naturally tilted inward, and it can also happen due to improper orthodontic treatment or habits.

When the front teeth are tilted backward, the lips also tend to curl inward, often creating a flat mouth shape, sometimes called a "thin-lipped" look.

Today, I’ll show you how protrusive upper teeth are corrected and how the face changes.

This is a patient who came in wanting to correct protrusive upper teeth.

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This is a patient who came in wanting to correct protrusive upper teeth.

A deep overbite is visible, where the front teeth overlap too much.

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Because the front teeth are tilted backward, the lips lack volume and look thin.

The patient wanted improvement because the chin tip looked prominent, like a prognathic jaw,

but orthodontics cannot move the chin tip.

Q. If you correct protrusive upper teeth, does a prognathic jaw also go back in?

A. The jawbone itself does not move with orthodontic treatment, but as lip volume is restored, the chin tip can appear less prominent relatively.

We explained this before starting treatment.

Even if orthodontic correction of protrusive upper teeth only restores three-dimensional fullness to the lips, the chin tip can appear less prominent by comparison.

This is similar to patients with a retruded chin and protrusive mouth, where after orthodontic treatment the chin appears more balanced as the protrusion of the lips improves.

Teeth follow perspective strictly.

The mouth shape should always be balanced with the entire face, as well as with the nose and chin area.

In addition to protrusive upper teeth and the mouth shape, there is another issue.

It is a case with low upper front tooth exposure.

Low upper front tooth exposure means that when smiling, the lower teeth show a lot.

In general, as people age, changes in the muscles and soft tissue around the mouth gradually cause only the lower teeth to show.

If upper front tooth exposure is low, the face can look older than the person’s actual age.

Q. Why does low upper front tooth exposure make you look older?

A. When you smile, if the upper teeth are less visible and the lower teeth are more visible, it tends to be perceived as a more aged expression. It can be improved with orthodontic treatment.

The patient wanted treatment with Clippy-C, and the treatment goals were to improve protrusive upper teeth and deep overbite, adjust the height of the front teeth,

improve upper front tooth exposure,

and restore lip fullness by improving the flat mouth shape.

One of the patient’s requests was to level the side where one canine looked more lowered.

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A mini screw was placed near the lower canine to adjust the occlusal plane,

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A blue resin bite block was placed on the front teeth to improve the deep overbite and encourage premolar extrusion.

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The total treatment period was 1 year and 1 month.

Because the patient was relatively young, treatment was completed quickly and smoothly.

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As the angle of the front teeth returned to normal,

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how much did the protrusive upper teeth improve?

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As the protrusive upper teeth and deep overbite improved,

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the lips that had curled inward gained more dimensionality, and the mouth shape became more attractive.

Orthodontic treatment did not move the lower jaw backward, but

when lip volume is restored, even the appearance of a prognathic jaw can improve.

Another treatment goal, improving upper front tooth exposure, also made the smile better.

Since the patient came from far away, we repay that effort with even better results.

If you are concerned about correcting protrusive upper teeth, please come in for an orthodontic consultation.