Shall I seek treatment with an Orthodontist or Dentist?
Patients who wish to have orthodontic (braces) treatment may approach any of the registered Orthodontists in Singapore. Orthodontists work either in dental practices or in dental departments within a hospital. You may find a list of registered Orthodontists here.
Why should we seek treatment with an Orthodontist rather than a Dentist?
General dentists are professionals who are highly trained in looking after your general dental health. However, basic dental training in dental school does not have in depth coverage of Orthodontics.
Orthodontists are first general dentists who then later choose to go through a 3-year full-time training programme focusing solely on braces and have to take an additional accreditation examination be-fore being recognised as a specialist. This rigorous training equips your orthodontist with the additional knowledge and skills required to accurately diagnose and treat crooked teeth, uneven bites, as well as work with oral surgeons to address jaw discrepancies.
The Singapore Dental Council ensures that all registered orthodontists fulfill stringent criteria during their postgraduate training prior to accepting them on the Specialist List. You can check if your provider has undergone formalised specialist training in orthodontics by visit-ing the Singapore Dental Council website. The website will list his/her name along with any additional qualifications in Orthodontics he/she has obtained.
Ever wondered what those letters listed after your Orthodontist’s name stand for?
These letters are acronyms of qualifications that your Orthodontist has obtained. The most common qualification seen for Orthodontists are MDS (Orthodontics) which stands for Master of Dental Surgery in Orthodontics. You can refer to Singapore Dental Council website for the full list of Displayable Qualifications.