Braces

Bronachmarie

I’m looking for advice regarding the cheapest way to pay for dental braces. My front teeth overlap and I am very keen to get them fixed.

I had braces during my teens so I don’t think I could get braces again on the NHS.

Does anyone know if it’s worth getting a health plan and which one is the best to go for?

Any info at all on the matter would be really appreciated!

Toothsmith

With interest rates as they are, I would get a low cost loan, or a credit card with a 0% deal and just go for it. A course of orthodontic treatment would be of the order of £2000. Providing there were no strange complications.

No company is going to provide insurance or payments that will total £2000 if you're not going to put £2000 in, so I wouldn't complicate matters.

healingtouch

Hi,

Just after some advice. I'm almost 28, on benefits and have a NHS dentist. Because i am on benefits i do not pay for my treatment. Had dentist appointment on monday and asked about braces - when i was a teenager it was recommended I had braces but i became very ill and the braces didn't happen. I am very self conscious of my teeth which are easily discoloured and stained (dentist thinks this is due to medication) and are crooked making cleaning some parts difficult and making me very self conscious. I have always hated my crooked teeth. It was my second 6-month check up at my dentist, but was with a new dentist. I have trouble finding a dentist because of complex medical needs including severe allergies to latex but my GP has been supportive and found me a special community dentist that takes on people with medical problems (although this took the best part of two years). On monday i asked about a brace and apparently the rules who getting a brace on the nhs have changed and i am borderline on needing a brace. But the waiting list is 4 years and she recommended i looked privately instead. Problem is money. Anyone know where the cheapest place to get a brace is, wherever there are plans similar to HSA (which i have but only lowest one) where i can reduce the cost of braces. Also any good websites to look at. I wish i could turn time back and insisted on the braces when i was a teenager, but like all teenagers i would have been self conscious about wearing a brace and then when i got ill it was not top priority in my life at the time.

Any advice gratefully received. Also would my medical conditions affect the price of treatment - for example my dentist has to have rubber free equipment for me.

HT

Teerah

Hi there,

your dentist should be able to give you a recommendation for an orthodontist but it can only be a private option as you are over 18. NHS orthodontic treatment is only free when started under the age of 18, you will not qualify despite being on benefits.
Am not aware of schemes like HSA covering orthodontics. Your best bet may be a loan of some sort or I'm sure the orthodontist will be able to give you the option of paying so much as you go along as average treatment time is about 18 months.

Toothsmith

You may well have even bigger problems finding a latex free orthodontic practice.

Orthodontists are pretty thin on the ground as it is. They normally use little latex rubber bands to hold the wires to the brackets.

For people with severe allergies, even just using an alternative for you may not be good enough. If you go into a room where latex gloves have been used, you may well get a reaction.

You might well have to find an orthodontist who would be able to treat you in a latex free surgery environment, and that is not going to be an easy thing to organise at all.

hellobint

Hi All

Hope there is someone out there who can advise me. I would like to get my teeth straightened (I am the only person I know who can stick their tongue out without actually opening their teeth!!)

As my job involves meeting people every day, I would prefer a less visible option. My dentist recommended Invisalign, clear plastic braces - but cost is about £4k!! I am considering going abroad, as Invisalign is non-invasive, there should be minimal risk for any aftermath. The other alternative would be to go outside of London. Has anyone else had this done (or can anyone suggest any cheap alternatives - someone else said about porcelain braces?!?)

All help much appreciated

bint

seanparkin

I'm interested in this also - I've horrible teeth (my parents never took me to a dentist when I was little, and now I'm grown up I'm too embarrassed/poor to have my teeth straightened!).

Toothsmith

All orthodontics requires regular visits to have things checked out.

This would mean regular trips abroad (Monthly if not more often) over a period of about 2 years.

Not all options are available for all malalignements - so it would be pointless me giving options here. Plus, I'm not an orthodontist, so am not well up on the dark arts of moving teeth about.

Despite being non- invasive, damage can be done with poorly adjusted bracework. And it does break occasionally too, which may mean the odd unscheduled visit - which would need to be arranged in a hurry, as a broken brace can do a lot of harm.

Invisalign is a good aesthetic way of moving teeth about, but as I said earlier, it is not suitable for every situation.

flufff

Hi,
can someone with a knowledge of orthodentic practise kindly advise me?
Finally got my children under an nhs dentist.Not terribly happy with way he flirts with his receptionist but hes better than previous who just lined my kids up to inspect their teeth.
My daughter has a rotated tooth upper side front.She was referred to a nice lady orthodontist.
Photos were taken.The first thing she mentioned was braces are no longer available on nhs unless the severity is a certain degree.My daughters 12 so still a child.
She assured us she would do her best if it was possible.I was rather taken aback.Money being mentioned for something I was told was free on nhs.
My daughter is very conscious of her tooth and did greatly bother her when it came through.The first dentist simply said it would straighten as it grew.
She hates her smile its quite a gap it gives at the side,shes a pretty girl and very conscious of it.
Well the letter arrived today.The orthodentist said nhs help isnt available according to orthodontist although ive never seen any statement from nhs to that effect,although shes a child as it changed in april according to orthodontist.
Orthodontist wants £1200 to treat her.
Since my divorce for past 5 years Ive been a single parent.I dont have savings .I dont have a credit card either.
Is this correct what shes written to us?Is it expensive or reasonable?What other course of action can we take?Is there anyway of appealing as obviously this was a problem before april.
Thankyou for reading.Any advice would be greatly appreciated.How do I tell my daughter I cant afford to get her tooth sorted.
My childrens dentist wont take me on either and I recq2uire 2 fillings urgently.

Toothsmith

Hi Fluff,

Unfortunately that is correct.

Orthodontics on the NHS is now goverened by a scale called the Index of Orthodontic (NOTE - Dontic - not Dentic!) Treatment Need, or IOTN for short.

Only kids in the most severe categories get treatment. This tends to be the kids that generally had braces before, but problems like your daughters, where just one tooth is a bit out, do tend to fall through the net now.

£1200 sounds reasonable to me. I generally work on a rule of thumb of £2000 for a course of ortho treatment.

One thing to say is has the orthodontist given you any indication of how stable the result would be?

Rotating teeth tends to be one of the hardest things to stabalise afterwards - they tend to just go back. Teeth de-rotated often have to be fixed to the next teeth with a thin wire behind the teeth virtually for life in order to hold them steady.

There can be other options other than orthodontics.

Rotated teeth can often be disguised as normal teeth by building them up with white filling (Cheaper but less long lasting - probably a good option whilst she's still very young) or porcelain veneers (More expensive, but will last a fair few years - assuming she doesn't start smoking at any point).

Although this option would also be cosmetic, and therefore not available on the NHS, the white filling option would cost about £100 or less, and maybe need re-doing every 5 years. The veneer would be anything from £250 upwards to £1000 depending on the material (But a good porcelain one would look fine and be at the lower end of those prices) and be good for a good 10 years assuming normal wear & tear.

nish

...Ive got this gap in the middle of my front teeth I dont want there...

Can you get braces when you are in adult life?! I thought you were supposed to get them when you were developing? Am I better off going for veneers? Wouldnt mind donning the old train tracks for a while if it sorts my mouth out