Braces

poppyolivia

I was told by my ortho that jaw surgery was awful and not worth me doing......he said it was a very long recovery period and very painful to the point fainting is very common. He also said a risk is loss of feeling to your face and taste can go too...obviously this is probably very rare to happen but it obviously does.

I think you have a hard neck coming on here and slating Toothsmith when at the end of the day you aren't anything to do with a dental practise...you had your jaw done and it worked for you which is great but it is not easy sailing for everyone...

Toothsmith

poppyolivia wrote: »

I think you have a hard neck coming on here and slating Toothsmith when at the end of the day you aren't anything to do with a dental practise...

That's a bit harsh. I really couldn't get through the day if it weren't for the back-up of evolutionary biologists.


I admit that jaws aren't often wired together - at least for so long - any more. The last person I knew who had this done though (about 10 yrs ago) did have.

The rest of it I stand by though.

It depends how you define 'rare' and 'serious'.

Compared to, say, having wisdom teeth out. It's extremely uncommon operation, and a lot more painful and serious.

Plastic surgeons DO do osteotomies. A 'plastic' surgeon isn't really a specialist in it's own right, but a name given to those who do more aesthetic operations for patients who elect to have them.

Oral surgery is the proper specialism, but an oral surgeon doing one for the 'right' reasons would give a good balance of pros and cons. A 'plastic' surgeon (oral surgeon doing it electively for a patient for aesthetic reasons) might gloss over some of the cons for fear of putting the patient off.

I don't think I said it would cost tens of thousands anywhere. I don't think I mentioned cost at all other than to say it would be done on the NHS if you met the criteria.

Zoology_Dragon

Toothsmith wrote: »

That's a bit harsh. I really couldn't get through the day if it weren't for the back-up of evolutionary biologists.


I admit that jaws aren't often wired together - at least for so long - any more. The last person I knew who had this done though (about 10 yrs ago) did have.

The rest of it I stand by though.

It depends how you define 'rare' and 'serious'.

Compared to, say, having wisdom teeth out. It's extremely uncommon operation, and a lot more painful and serious.

Plastic surgeons DO do osteotomies. A 'plastic' surgeon isn't really a specialist in it's own right, but a name given to those who do more aesthetic operations for patients who elect to have them.

Oral surgery is the proper specialism, but an oral surgeon doing one for the 'right' reasons would give a good balance of pros and cons. A 'plastic' surgeon (oral surgeon doing it electively for a patient for aesthetic reasons) might gloss over some of the cons for fear of putting the patient off.

I don't think I said it would cost tens of thousands anywhere. I don't think I mentioned cost at all other than to say it would be done on the NHS if you met the criteria.

Thanks for taking my comments in good grace, I think I like you. I still maintain that you're wrong (imo ) on many of these points but that's cool and I do acknowledge that perhaps many of these points are open to interpretation (in terms of what is "rare" or "painful" etc). I admit that my original reply was more coherent and better explained, I didn't have time to rewrite it though. You did say 10000s at some point, you might only have meant 1000s though, it doesn't matter anyway as anyone needing this surgery would qualify for NHS treatment anyway (as you said). One thing though in response to above, my surgeon made it clear to me that jaw surgery is actually much less painful than having teeth removed. I actually had rather a lot of pain but this was unusual in itself and largely related to my latex allergy (silly people apparently ignored the big red allergy band on my wrist, good job it's a relatively mild allergy!). More serious than having teeth out? Well, I can't really argue with that :rotfl: The plastic surgeon thing, can't really argue again, I was working on the assumption that anyone having an osteotomy would be doing it for medical reasons in which case: oral-maxillo-facial surgeon. I take your point though.

poppyolivia - you're very easily upset, there was no slating, just a correction of some imo wrong information, no need to get your knickers in a twist. There's no reason why this can't be discussed in an adult way without resorting to unpleasant comments, toothsmith was clearly able to take my comments in the spirit they were intended, if we still disagree then that's cool, in fact I rather respect that he stands by his opinions. Also, I never said it was "easy sailing" for me, in fact I had some rather unpleasant complications but this was unusual in itself and not a result of the jaw surgery per se. Btw, "hard neck"? Never heard that one before, sounds painful...

Anyway, back to the point, I just wanted to say that it's really not as bad as it sounds from of the posts on here so if anyone is considering it, do your research and decide for yourself. Also you could do worse than have a peek on Archwired.com.

Toothsmith

Zoology_Dragon wrote: »

Anyway, back to the point, I just wanted to say that it's really not as bad as it sounds from of the posts on here so if anyone is considering it, do your research and decide for yourself. Also you could do worse than have a peek on Archwired.com.

I'd agree with that, but everybody has different perceptions and responses to things.

I had one chap once who had a wisdom tooth out with no anaesthetic (It was quite a straightforward one, and he was the boyfriend of my receptionist. He insisted he didn't need one and he didn't flinch). But I have others who leap about all over the place on the simplest of cleanings.

There are different types of osteotomies too, some less radical than others.

The bottom line though is that your jaw IS broken and fixed into a different place. The bone has all sorts of nerve channels and blood vessels running through it and even more delicate structures in the upper jaw.

It is not an operation to be undertaken for fun, and it doesn't matter if 99 other people have had no problems at all with it, if you're the one left with a droopy numb lip.

pandora205

Well next milestone with mine (braces not jaw surgery). I've had a second brace put on my bottom teeth. This time I can't have ceramic and it would damage my teeth, and already they are worn down to the dentine. Still, I wasn't expecting this to be so heavy weight and well obvious.

I've had a nickel (?) heavier wire put in the top brace, and this is the longer term one now. The teeth have already moved wonderfully and are amazingly straight but apparently there are still a few degrees to go.

The orthodontist has built up my rear teeth with lots of cement so that I can bite still Let's hope it works. I'm not going to be able to each very much solid food for a day or two.... Let's hope it's all worth it. Only another 12 months!

choccyface2006

I had mine taken off on Monday!!! :j:j:j:j:j

pandora205

choccyface2006 wrote: »

I had mine taken off on Monday!!! :j:j:j:j:j

Congratulations! I can't imagine ever getting that far just now.

choccyface2006

pandora205 wrote: »

Congratulations! I can't imagine ever getting that far just now.

I felt like that too, but after 2.5 years they are off!

Sarah x

REM1307

Hi, I guess this is mostly for toothsmith, but I was after a rough guide of what to expect time and cost wise.

I've got crooked top teeth on 1 side from thumbsucking as a child. I'd like my teeth straight someday but suspect it will cost lots and take ages. Can you give me a rough idea of costs (know you can't be exact not knowing my teeth but nice to know if looking at 1,000s, 10,000's etc and a rough guide of how many).

Also, how long does treatment take for these sorts of things?

Are the invisible braces possibly an option? (work with customers so don't really want train tracks unless they're loads cheaper or loads quicker).

Thank you.

Penny_Watcher

REM1307 wrote: »

Hi, I guess this is mostly for toothsmith, but I was after a rough guide of what to expect time and cost wise.

I've got crooked top teeth on 1 side from thumbsucking as a child. I'd like my teeth straight someday but suspect it will cost lots and take ages. Can you give me a rough idea of costs (know you can't be exact not knowing my teeth but nice to know if looking at 1,000s, 10,000's etc and a rough guide of how many).

Also, how long does treatment take for these sorts of things?

Are the invisible braces possibly an option? (work with customers so don't really want train tracks unless they're loads cheaper or loads quicker).

Thank you.

Until Toothsmith comes along I can give you a 'ballpark' idea of the cost of private braces. This is fairly current (within the last couple of months).

Penny_Watcher wrote: »

Just to give you some idea of the cost of Private Orthodontic Fees (received this morning for DD2's 'cosmetic' need for braces)

Consultation for child £75

X-rays £35 each

Treatments

Removable braces £500 - £1200
Fixed braces £1700 - £3700
Lingual* braces £4800 - £8300
Invisalign aligners £2000 - £4300


Interest free payment plans are available.

* Lingual braces are the ones that go inside (next to the tongue as opposed to outside next to the lips).




I've seen the truly remarkable work this orthodontist has performed on my son's teeth (on NHS as they were so badly misplaced they were in danger of being knocked out) so although we can't really afford for DD2 to have braces we'll have to manage somehow.

DS1 had a great need for braces and the whole treatment took 3½ years. DD2's need is much less. The whole treatment should be over within 18 months.