Teeth remain mobile throughout life

Teeth naturally have a slight degree of mobility. While this is barely noticeable to you, it makes orthodontic treatment possible well into old age.

How natural tooth mobility develops

Natural tooth mobility serves a biological purpose by cushioning the forces exerted during chewing. If teeth were firmly fused to the jawbone, chewing would eventually place too much strain on both the teeth and the jawbone. This mobility is due to the unique structure of the periodontium, which anchors the tooth in the jaw. The periodontium consists, among other things, of the tooth socket (alveolus), where the tooth is suspended by collagen fibers. The collagen fibers are arranged in such a way that they yield slightly under pressure, keeping the tooth slightly mobile.

The benefit for orthodontics

However, the periodontium is only capable of compensating for short-term chewing forces. If forces act on the tooth over a longer period of time and in a direction other than that of the chewing process, the tooth moves accordingly. The tissue surrounding the tooth adapts to this, so that the tooth maintains its new position. Orthodontics takes advantage of this to correct misaligned teeth in children and adults of all ages. To this end, our orthodontic practice in Berlin Mitte offers various methods, such as the nearly invisible Invisalign aligners or ceramic brackets, which allow us to make orthodontic treatment as comfortable and aesthetically pleasing as possible.