Can Braces Change Your Lips?
It goes without saying that orthodontic treatment changes the alignment of the teeth and the effectiveness of the bite, but many people don’t realize that braces affect the entire anatomy of the face and mouth, including the lips, the jawline, and the facial profile. When children undergo orthodontic treatment when their bones are still growing, the effects on the facial structures are even more significant. Depending on the patient’s age during orthodontic treatment, some facial changes will be more dramatic than others, and sometimes, there are no facial changes at all.
During treatment, traditional braces can affect the appearance of the lips and make them appear larger than they are. This is only because of the bulk of the braces, which pushes the lips away from the teeth, and it only lasts as long as the treatment. After treatment, the position and shape of the lips can also change, but this is in direct relationship to the position and shape of the dentition. To clarify, using an underbite as an example, once the upper and lower rows of teeth are brought into alignment, the upper lip will appear fuller. This is due to a greater amount of lip tissue being exposed and visible because of the repositioning of the teeth. When the top teeth jut forward and are brought back into position, the upper lip will also relax back onto the teeth. So, the lips only ever change as much as their support – your teeth – change.
Based on the popularity of clear orthodontic aligners like Invisalign, adults often wonder if they can expect other changes to their facial features during and after orthodontic therapies. At your orthodontic consultation, your doctor can assess which areas of your face might change and explain how you might expect them to appear once your teeth are corrected. In many cases, when adults are undergoing orthodontic treatment, the changes to face shape are so gradual as to be barely discernible, as the skeleton is already fully developed. Braces won’t affect the shape or size of the nose, though they could modify the width of the upper jaw; they don’t affect areas above that. If your braces modify your teeth and jaw enough for your profile to change, this may make your nose appear different, particularly when in profile, but this is actually due to the reshaping of the upper jaw. If the upper jaw and teeth are pulled in, for example, as occurs when treating an overbite, the nose will appear different in contrast with the upper lip than it did before treatment.
In children undergoing orthodontic therapies, the shape and size of the jaw can be modified with braces and other appliances, though these interventions are orthopedic as well as orthodontic. In adults, braces can’t be expected to change the jawline, though braces can be included in a comprehensive surgical plan to modify the jaw when defects are present. These procedures usually require multiple medical and dental practitioners working in conjunction and are quite complex. Even less complex orthodontic treatments can have a beneficial effect on the orofacial structures and the appearance of the smile, as well as on the overall appearance of the face.