Space Maintainer

Ensuring healthy smile development.

What is a space maintainer?

A space maintainer — also called a tooth spacer — is a small dental device used to maintain the gap that is created when a baby tooth falls out too early, whether due to injury, decay or extraction. This gap is important to ensure a healthy adult tooth can emerge later. Space maintainers include a metal loop that extends into the gap and prevents other teeth from drifting into it.

What does a space maintainer do?

If a baby tooth falls out prematurely and the space isn’t preserved, nearby teeth can drift into the gap and affect the emergence of the adult tooth that should go into that place. When this happens, it can cause dental problems that require a lot of treatment later in life. By preserving the gap with a dental spacer, we can prevent these added complications and ensure healthy development.

How do spacers for teeth work?

Custom-designed for each patient, a space maintainer uses stable metal to hold other teeth in their current position and prevent them from moving into the gap. There are two main space maintainer types:

Fixed: The spacer is bonded to the surrounding teeth with dental cement.
Removable: The spacer can be taken out for cleaning and eating.

The benefits of early treatment

We recommend having an initial orthodontic assessment by age 7. At this stage, we can identify how well teeth and jaws are developing and diagnose any potential issues. This helps us use preventive health care measures to direct teeth placement as early as possible, while also improving overall oral health, lowering the risk of tooth decay and correcting harmful oral habits.

Early orthodontic treatment may not wholly prevent the need for orthodontics later in life, but it should make future treatments shorter and easier. Some signs your child may require early interceptive orthodontics include:

Mouth breathing
Noticeably crowded, crooked or protruding teeth
Thumb sucking after 6 years old
Difficulty chewing
Speech impediments caused by a lack of space for the tongue

Healthy development from the start

Space maintainers are small, but they have a major impact. If your child has lost a baby tooth prematurely, get in touch to find out how we can help guide their growing smile and prevent future issues. We can’t wait to meet you.

FAQs

How long does a space maintainer stay in?

The spacer needs to stay in until the permanent adult tooth begins to erupt in the gap. This can take several months to a few years, depending on how prematurely the baby tooth comes out. We will regularly monitor your child’s progress to find the safest time to remove the space maintainer.

Can my child eat normally with a space maintainer?

We recommend sticking to a diet of soft foods when wearing a space maintainer, but children can largely eat normally. Children should limit or avoid foods that may damage or dislodge the spacer, including hard, sticky or overly chewy foods.

Is a space maintainer painful?

While wearing a space maintainer can cause some discomfort until the child gets used to it, they do not cause any pain. We make sure the device is fitted comfortably and properly, and because it does not actually move teeth but just holds them in place, it should not cause any pain.