Career Profile: Orthodontists

Salary and Outlook

According to the US Department of Labor, there are 6,000 people employed as orthodontists in the United States. The median annual salary is $208,000. Entry level employees earn approximately $95,940 per year and senior employees earn approximately $208,000 (or more) per year.

Estimates do not include other potential benefits such as health insurance, overtime, or retirement benefits that may be offered by employers.

Job Duties

• Adjust dental appliances to produce and maintain normal function.
• Fit dental appliances in patients' mouths to alter the position and relationship of teeth and jaws or to realign teeth.
• Diagnose teeth and jaw or other dental-facial abnormalities.
• Examine patients to assess abnormalities of jaw development, tooth position, and other dental-facial structures.
• Provide patients with proposed treatment plans and cost estimates.
• Study diagnostic records, such as medical or dental histories, plaster models of the teeth, photos of a patient's face and teeth, and X-rays, to develop patient treatment plans.
• Instruct dental officers and technical assistants in orthodontic procedures and techniques.
• Prepare diagnostic and treatment records.
• Design and fabricate appliances, such as space maintainers, retainers, and labial and lingual arch wires.
• Coordinate orthodontic services with other dental and medical services.

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