Enjoy that straight smile feeling
Specialist orthodontics for all
Specialist orthodontics for all
Your trusted orthodontist in Amersham
If you’re looking for a 5* rated highly experienced specialist orthodontist near you in Amersham, our world renowned team offer stunning results at competitive prices.
Our orthodontic and dental team has a wealth of knowledge and have helped transform the smiles, lives and confidence for thousands of children, teens and adults from Amersham, Buckinghamshire and beyond.
Courses or Mentoring by Dr Decker
If you are interested in our courses on 1 to 1 mentoring with Dr Decker, please write to Emily at courses@theorthodonticspecialist.co.uk.
Why choose The Orthodontic Specialist
- Top 1% Apex Invisalign Provider 2021-2023
- World No.1 Lingual Incognito Provider 2017
- Over 130 5* Google reviews
- International speaker and KOL
- Unrivalled specialist orthodontic expertise
- Competitively priced excellence
- 1st and only Kois Recognized Ortho Specialist
- 0% finance options available
- Superb state-of-the-art practice
- Family-friendly, welcoming environment
- Over 120 5* Google Reviews
- Unrivalled specialist orthodontic expertise
- Highly qualified and experienced team
- Superb state-of-the-art practice
- Exceptional level of treatment and care
- Competitevely priced excellence
- 0% finance options available
- Family-friendly, welcoming environment
Our philosophy
In this video, Dr Steffen Decker, gives an insight into the philosophy at the heart of our practice and all we do.
Patient Testimonial
See our fantastic range of treatments
Orthodontic referrals
We are more than happy to take referrals from our dental colleagues at other practices. Please get in touch to find out how we can benefit you and your patients with our specialist experience, knowledge and skills.
World-class expertise
Our Practice Principal, Dr Steffen Decker, is one of the world’s leading Clear Aligner and lingual orthodontists and is well-renowned figure in his field.
He has been awarded World No. 1 Lingual Incognito Provider 2017 and he belonged to the Top 1% Apex Invisalign Providers 2021-2023 in Europe, Middle East and North Africa and to the Align Global Faculty. He is the First and only Kois Recognized Specialist in the UK. He is KOL and teaching worldwide.
Our superb modern orthodontic clinic near you
Our stunning practice is as comfortable and welcoming as it looks. Throughout we are trying to tell a story, so that our patients feel comfortable. We have all the latest equipment and facilities available to offer you the very best in orthodontics and children’s dentistry.
❤️Welcome Dr. Nathalie to The Orthodontic Specialist Team!
We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Nathalie to our team; who will be working alongside Dr. Steffen Decker to treat our young patients with clear aligners and 3D metal-printed devices.
Dr. Nathalie’s journey is deeply personal—her own children’s experience with treatment led her to seek the best possible care. That’s how she met Dr. Decker, and their shared passion for innovative, patient-centered orthodontics brought her to our team. She will soon share her inspiring story of how this journey began!
Join us in welcoming Dr. Nathalie—we’re so excited to have her on board! 💙
#orthodontist #orthodonticspecialist #mouthbreathing #crookedteeth
If your child ever has a dental X-ray, dentists and orthodontists aren’t just looking at the teeth you can see 👀.
We’re checking how many adult teeth are actually forming underneath.
If a child is missing six or more adult teeth (not counting wisdom teeth), this isn’t just “a few missing teeth” — it’s a condition called OLIGODONTIA.
🧬 What does that mean?
Oligodontia is something a child is born with, often linked to genetics.
It can affect:
🍽️ chewing
🗣️ speech
📐 jaw growth
😁 spacing, bite, and smile
💛 confidence as your child grows
The tricky part?
👶 You often can’t see it just by looking in the mouth, because baby teeth can still be present and look completely normal.
🩻 Why X-rays matter
A panoramic X-ray helps the dental team see:
🦷 which adult teeth are developing
❌ which are missing
📊 how the jaws are growing
When this is identified early, it allows for a gentle, long-term plan:
🛡️ protecting baby teeth
🌱 guiding jaw growth
📏 planning spaces carefully
🧠 thinking ahead to future options when your child is older
So when an X-ray is recommended, it’s not “just extra radiation” ❌.
It’s how important conditions like this are picked up early enough to protect your child’s function, appearance, and confidence 💛
👉 So… how many adult teeth are missing in this case? 👇
Comment CHECKLIST to get access to our airway checklist
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🧠 Dentists & Orthos — comment ACADEMY to learn more.
#orthodontist #missingteeth #earlyinterceptiveorthodontics #preventativeorthodontics #drsteffendecker
📣📣📣 Dentists & orthodontists: Join Dr Steffen Decker for
Straight Talk: Orthodontic Foundation Series @orthodonticspecialistacademy
A 6-evening online foundational series, positioned above generic CPD ( fees apply).
Case-based. Principle-driven. No appliance bias.
📩 DM your email to receive the details.
🎹 Comment CHECKLIST to get access to our airway checklist ❤️
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📤 Share with a parent who needs to see this
📩 DM us to book an orthodontic screening
#orthodontist #dentist #dentaleducation #earlyinterceptiveorthodontics #drsteffendecker
Super excited about our new podcast: @autismbrainempowerment 22nd of January 2026 at 8pm 🇬🇧
#autism #autistic #orthodontist
PART 2: (Part 1 is on our grid from 8 January 2026)
Figure 2 — Orthodontic strategy for children with SDB
This figure is the heart of the paper.
It shows why orthodontic care for children with sleep-disordered breathing must be individualised and timed to growth.
👉 Not every child needs the same treatment.
They need the right approach for their craniofacial pattern — at the right growth window.
Growth isn’t linear.
Timing matters more than force.
This isn’t about appliances — it’s about clinical thinking.
🙏 Thank you to the authors of this article for advancing our understanding and sharing this important knowledge.
——— 📣📣📣
🎓 Dentists & orthodontists: Join Dr Steffen Decker for
Straight Talk: Orthodontic Foundation Series @orthodonticspecialistacademy
A 6-evening online foundational series, positioned above generic CPD.
Case-based. Principle-driven. No appliance bias.
📩 DM your email to receive the details.
🎹 Comment CHECKLIST to get access to our airway checklist ❤️
📥 Save this post to refer back to
📤 Share with a parent who needs to see this
📩 DM us to book an orthodontic screening
#orthodontist #dentist #dentaleducation #earlyinterceptiveorthodontics #drsteffendecker
🦷 Anterior crossbite — why aligner design matters
In anterior crossbite cases, correcting tooth position isn’t just about pushing teeth forward or back.
It’s about how forces are delivered and controlled 🧠⚙️
That’s why in this case we used a high trim-line aligner design ⬆️
✨ A higher trim line allows the aligner to:
• 🔒 engage more of the tooth and surrounding support
• 🎯 improve retention and control of movement
• 🌿 deliver gentler, more predictable forces
• ↔️ reduce unwanted tipping during correction
👶 In growing patients, precision matters.
Well-designed aligners help guide teeth into a healthier position while respecting the bite, jaw function, and surrounding tissues.
Because successful orthodontics isn’t just about moving teeth — it’s about moving them in the right way ✅
Comment CHECKLIST to get access to our airway checklist
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🧠 Dentists & Orthos — comment ACADEMY to learn more.
#orthodontist #pediatricdentist #earlyinterceptiveorthodontics #preventativeorthodontics #drsteffendecker
Is your child always like this? 👀
Tired eyes. Open mouth. Crooked teeth.
What if it’s not just “how they are” — but signs of something deeper?
📸 Meet Child 1
From an airway-aware lens, here’s what we see:
✅ Mouth open at rest
✅ Buck teeth & crowding
✅ Long face shape
✅ Flat cheeks
✅ Lips don’t seal naturally
✅ (Likely) low tongue posture
💡 These are often signs of mouth breathing and poor jaw development.
⸻
Why does this happen?
👄 Mouth breathing
👃 Nasal obstruction
👅 Low tongue posture
🦷 Underdeveloped jaws
🧠 Sleep-disordered breathing
💤 Disrupted growth and development
These patterns don’t just appear — they develop silently over time if the root causes are missed.
⸻
👁 Red flags to watch for in your child’s face:
❌ Mouth open at rest
❌ Dry, cracked lips
❌ Snoring or noisy breathing
❌ Crooked teeth by age 6–7
❌ Delayed speech
❌ Tired look / dark under-eyes
❌ Long face or weak chin
❌ Frequent colds or sinus issues
❌ Daytime fatigue or hyperactivity
❌ Bedwetting past age 5
⸻
🛠️ How we help:
• Palatal expansion (RME, etc.)
• Aligners, braces or hybrid approach
• Myofunctional therapy (in-house or referral)
• Functional appliances
• Growth tracking (cephs, 3D scans, clinical exams)
• ENT collaboration where needed
⸻
👶 Your child’s face is full of clues.
Don’t ignore them.
🌱 Early intervention isn’t about rushing treatment — it’s about gently guiding growth in the right direction.
📥 Save this post for reference
📤 Share with a parent who needs this
📩 DM us to book an airway-friendly orthodontic screening
#AirwayOrthodontics #MouthBreathing #MyofunctionalTherapy #orthodonticspecialist #drsteffendecker
Dr Suri once asked me a question that stopped me in my tracks:
“Have you seen your interceptive orthodontic cases 30 years later?” 🧠
Early orthodontic treatment is usually well-intended. But without a deep understanding of growth, function, and long-term adaptation, some interventions can create effects that only show up years — or decades — later.
📸 A great finish doesn’t always mean long-term stability.
Teeth can be straight, yet relapse.
Jaws can look aligned, yet function deteriorates.
❌ This isn’t anti-interceptive orthodontics.
✅ It’s a call for better diagnosis, better timing, and respect for biology.
⏳ Growth isn’t linear.
🔁 Function drives form.
🎓 That’s why I’m inviting you to our Academy @orthodonticspecialistacademy — where we teach the principles and clinical protocols behind this eye-opening approach, so early treatment supports lifelong stability, not just short-term results.
Because in orthodontics, success isn’t the finish photo —
it’s what still works 20–30 years later.
Dr Steffen Decker
Comment CHECKLIST to get access to our airway checklist
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📤 Share with a parent who needs to see this
📩 DM us to book an orthodontic screening
🧠 Dentists & Orthos — comment ACADEMY to learn more.
#orthodontist #pediatricdentist #earlyinterceptiveorthodontics #preventativeorthodontics #drsteffendecker
🧠 Why do we say the UK needs a change?
Because the health signals are already there.
In the UK, we’re seeing rising rates of:
• Tooth crowding and bite problems
• Mouth breathing, snoring, and sleep issues in children
• Early orthodontic complexity
• Childhood obesity and nutrient deficiency existing side by side
At the same time, children’s diets have become softer, more processed, and quicker to eat than ever before.
That means less chewing, less jaw stimulation, and less space developing for teeth and airways — even when genetics are favourable.
🍽️ This isn’t just about sugar or weight
Current food guidance focuses heavily on calories, sugar, and obesity — which matters —
but it often overlooks how food texture and chewing affect growth.
From an orthodontic and airway perspective:
• Chewing is a growth stimulus
• Jaw development affects breathing and sleep
• Breathing and sleep affect learning, behaviour, and health
🦷 Why orthodontists are paying attention
We see the downstream effects years later:
small jaws, crowded teeth, narrow airways — and children who struggle with sleep and focus.
That’s why many clinicians believe future UK food guidance should also consider:
• food texture
• chewing demands
• nutrient density for bone and muscle growth
Because healthy growth isn’t just about what children eat — it’s also about how their bodies use it.
👀 Orthodontics is evolving, and it’s becoming part of a much bigger conversation about child health, development, and prevention.
Comment CHECKLIST to get access to our airway checklist ❤️
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#orthodontist #orthodonticspecialist #obesity #crookedteeth #drsteffendecker
As orthodontists, we know that teeth don’t move in isolation.
They sit within growing jaws, are guided by muscles, and are influenced every day by how a child chews, swallows, breathes, and rests their tongue.
That’s why orthodontic treatment is about more than straightening teeth — it’s about working with the whole system.
When relapse happens, it’s often not because treatment failed.
More commonly, it means that something functional is still influencing the bite — such as muscle patterns, jaw growth, or tongue posture.
In growing children, these influences can quietly guide teeth back to where the body feels most balanced.
Our role as orthodontists is to look deeper:
• how the jaws are developing
• how the muscles are working
• and whether function is supporting long-term stability
Because the goal isn’t just a straight smile today —
it’s a stable, comfortable bite that works with your child’s growth for years to come.
🌱 Early intervention doesn’t always mean braces —
sometimes it means guiding growth, breaking habits, or simply monitoring at the right time.
🎹 Comment CHECKLIST to get access to our airway checklist
📥 Save this post to refer back to
📤 Share with a parent who needs to see this
📩 DM us to book an orthodontic screening
🧠 Dentists & Orthos — comment ACADEMY to learn more.
#orthodonticspecialist #drsteffendecker #crookedteeth #orthodonticrelapse #earlyintervention
2026: first podcast of the year with @theairwayqueen on Monday the 12th of January at 8pm 🇬🇧 time
TOPICS: Upper airway expansion & vivos devices 🙌
Join us with questions
See you next Monday!
Children don’t just grow teeth — they grow faces, jaws, and airways together.
Looking at the whole picture early can support better breathing, better sleep, and healthier development.
🙏 With thanks to the authors of this important article for advancing our understanding of paediatric sleep and growth.
👩⚕️ From an orthodontic perspective, early checks help us:
• understand why the teeth are sticking out
• guide jaw growth while the face is still developing
• reduce the risk of trauma
• avoid more complex treatment later
🌱 Early intervention doesn’t always mean braces —
sometimes it means guiding growth, breaking habits, or simply monitoring at the right time.
🎹 Comment CHECKLIST to get access to our airway checklist ❤️
📥 Save this post to refer back to
📤 Share with a parent who needs to see this
📩 DM us to book an orthodontic screening
🧠 Dentists & Orthos — comment ACADEMY to learn more.
#sleepdisorders #sleepdisorderedbreathing #orthodonticspecialist #drsteffendecker #crookedteeth
