Deep bite

Filed under Closed Bite/Deep Bite

The American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) files deep bite in its Glossary of Orthodontic Terms under the heading Closed Bite/Deep Bite, and defines it in a single sentence: “Also known as deep overbite, this occurs when the upper front teeth overlap the bottom front teeth an excessive amount.” The amount is what makes the bite deep. The upper and lower front teeth overlap a little in a proper bite, so the word marks an overlap past that, not the overlap itself.

Overbite, the everyday word for a deep bite

Overbite is the everyday word for a deep bite, and the AAO uses both words for the same problem. Its article on deep bites says deep bite and overbite are often used interchangeably, and the AAO glossary’s own Overbite entry points back the other way: “Also called a closed bite or deep bite.” Closed bite, deep bite, deep overbite, excessive overbite and overbite all name the same overlap in the AAO’s usage. If you hear any of them, the question underneath is the same: how much of the lower front teeth the upper ones cover.

From top to bottom, with the molars closed

A deep bite is described from top to bottom and with the back teeth together, and the AAO’s article on deep bites spells out both: “A deep bite, also known as an excessive overbite, is a type of malocclusion where the upper front teeth significantly cover the lower front teeth from top to bottom when the molars are closed together.” From top to bottom is what separates a deep bite from an overjet, which the same article treats as a horizontal distance.

Treatment for a deep bite is a matter for the questions page on overbite, and the related bite words sit together in the glossary’s list of terms.