Nowadays, the line between an orthodontist and a dentist is more blurred than ever before. Sometimes, patients will reference that their last orthodontist also did their dental work -- turns out, that was their dentist.
Many dentists today practice orthodontics, but that doesn’t mean that they are a true, specially trained orthodontist. Trained orthodontists like Tina Reed, are licensed dentists who complete dental school and then go onto an university or medical center that is accredited by the American Dental Association for 2-3 years to get training in correcting malocclussion. (You can learn more about malocclusion and figure out if you have it here.)
It’s not easy to get into an orthodontic specialty education program -- most of us graduated at the tops of our class in dental school. During post-graduate residency, orthodontists in training devote at least 8 hours a day, five days a week for 24 to 36 months, learning all of the intricacies that go into diagnosing and treating teeth that aren’t perfectly straight. All together, orthodontists train for 4,000 to 6,000 hours after completing dental school!
After attending dental school at the University of Pittsburgh, Dr. Reed moved to San Francisco to complete her advanced orthodontic residency to earn a Masters of Science degree in Oral Biology from the University of California - San Francisco. Her research thesis at UCSF was part of a long-term clinical study of the effects of female reproductive hormones on Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) disease. Today, she is a licensed orthodontist and a member of the American Association of Orthodontists, the Western Pennsylvania Society of Orthodontists, the Great Lakes Association of Orthodontists and the American Dental Association.
When deciding whether to see a dentist or an orthodontist for straightening your teeth, consider the following: Your primary care physician is legally allowed to perform brain surgery on you and give you psychiatric advice. But does that mean you’d actually go through with that?
Having a healthy smile and bite is critical to good overall health, and seeing a specialist for these issues is essential for your health -- and your peace of mind.
Click here to contact a qualified orthodontist with offices in Pittsburgh’s North Hills and Squirrel Hill today!
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