My orthodontist wants to remove my premolars before getting braces, is that necessary?

Hard to say...: The internet is a great place, but not to diagnose a patient and second guess their orthodontist, especially without being able to see the mouth, face, bite, malocclusion, and profile in question. If you would like a meaningful second opinion, make an appointment with another local orthodontist who can actually see and treat you.

Probably: Removing premolars for orthodontic treatment is quite common, about 20% of orthodontic cases need premolars to be removed. Sometimes your teeth are just so crowded, the only way to gain enough space is to remove the bicuspids.

All Depends: Premolar extraction is not uncommon in orthoodntic treatment, especially when there is moderate to severe dental crowding. If the dental crowding is too severe that the orthodontists does not believe he/she can straighten the teeth properly without the space, yes, it can be necessary.

Can be: Extracting teeth as part of orthodontic treatment is not unusual. If you have excessive crowding, and there is no other way to address this (expansion, slenderizing, proclining are all methods used), then yes, extraction may be required.

Reasonable: In many people where there is a lot of crowding it may be necessary to have some teeth removed. This allows the remaining teeth to be properly aligned and positioned within the supporting bone. Many times if there is severe crowding and teeth are not removed, the roots of the teeth may be move beyond where there is bone to support them. This can lead to much more severe problems in the future.

Necessary extraction: Unfortunately, this question cannot be answered in any way without a complete diagnosis. This question brings up so many variables because there are so many elements that make up the complex decision leading to orthodontic treatment. And, even then, often, there are course corrections necessary leading to a satisfactory finished orthodontic result.

Normal: For orthodontist to extract teeth to creat space to be able to move teeth to its normal position in cases of over crowding to creat maximum occlusion

Depends: Many orthodontists routinely had the premolars removed to make room for the other teeth for braces many years ago. The main problem that resulted, though, was beautiful smiles and tmj/tmd issues. Now, orthodontists are more aware of the jaw joints and often try and treat patients without the premolar extractions. There are still reasons to remove, but if in doubt, get a second opinion.

Assuming: Assuming you are seeing a fully qualified Orthodontic Specialist the Orthodontist is exquisitely trained to make that decision with you. There are some Orthodontic dilemmas that cannot be safely and adequately resolved without reducing tooth mass. Ask your Orthodontist "why." We love talking about what we do.