For the record, an orthodontist is a doctor who specializes in perfecting smiles by making use of orthodontic appliances. These could be bands, brackets, wires, headgear, rubber bands, retainers and braces. There are a number of dental appliances used today. However, braces remain the first and foremost means for straightening teeth and correcting misaligned teeth in kids. This appliance works by pressure application to the teeth and jaws to shift them into certain other slots in the mouth. Braces could be fashioned out of stainless steel, ceramic, plastic or a combination of differing materials.
There could be appliances to check other dental irregularities too. Appliances to repair a broken or decayed tooth, for instance, could be an artificial crown. For artificially replacing missing teeth, one could use a dental plate or a denture. Even dental fillings, which are a mixture of various substances like metal or plastic are inserted into a prepared cavity in a tooth, are a version of dental appliances. Then come retainers or dental appliances which hold teeth or a prosthesis in position after a round of orthodontic treatment. These too, are forms of dental appliances.
Then is the matter of oral appliance therapy. For the record, for a long time now, oral appliance therapy for obstructive sleep apnea has been covered by almost all of the medical insurance firms. Even then, it is commonplace to come across professionals dealing with sleep medicine care who are still unaware of this facility. Oral appliance therapy is covered by medical insurance by the use of similar reasons which are utilized for continuous positive airway pressure therapy (CPAP).
Just like in cases of CPAP, there are a set of conditions which the dentist must ensure about, so as to enable the patient to obtain grounds for medical coverage. This is inclusive of a written prescription for the appliance from a certified physician who could be a family doctor or even a sleep doctor. It is also a fact that almost all health insurance companies do not ask for a trial of CPAP or failure of CPAP therapy for giving the insurance cover.
There are a few facts concerning this matter. For example, not all dentists are contracted with medical insurance companies. Such is not the case, by option. This is because it is not all that easy for dentists to even communicate with medical insurance companies. Though, a few dentists who are totally into the field of oral appliance therapy do make the required effort to do so.
A lot many from the dentist community charge their fees at the time of service. They do not wait to see what the insurance cover will pay. This is because the lab fees which the dentists incur are done before the patient is declared fit. There could be scores of other reasons too for this behavior. Thus, before going in for treatment of such sort, these matters should be looked into unless the treatment is of the nature of an emergency.
Kelly Manuel is a writer and illustrator who has been published in many books for children. Her favorite things to do are read, draw, and play with her dog. Kelly Manuel was born on October 18th, 1985. She grew up as an only child but she always had lots of dogs around the house because her parents were both veterinarians. She loved reading from a very young age and would often make up stories about the dogs that came into the clinic where she lived with her parents.