NHS Orthodontic Treatment Advice...

r_moore04

i need some real help, im 21 this year, none of my teeth are lined up prop, and my jaw isnt in line, and last time i went to the dentist i was told that to get everything fixed it would cost me £3500/£4000, but i cant get the money and im scared that if it doesnt get sorted out now then its going be like this for the rest of my life, i need to find out if the NHS does do it, and for how much and how long the waiting list is, how is the best way 2 get everything started??? i think its stupid that ppl like me have to pay loads to get something fixed like teeth, i mean if my arm or leg stopped working or something that would all be done on the NHS free but why not teeth??

alison999

if its cosmetic then i dont think the nhs would fund it.

r_moore04

i just want my teeth straight, im not bothered about my jaw yet, soo i dont think it would be cosmetic

Toothsmith

Were you offered the treatment when you were younger?

If it's a large jaw misalignmnet, then it can take an operation to put it right. This would be available on the NHS if it were necessary.

If things are a long way out with your teeth, then treatment may still be available to you on the NHS, but if it's just that some teeth are a little bit crossed, then that doesn't have any effect on your health, or the health of your teeth.

Ifyou just want them to look a bit better, then it will be up to you to pay for it.

3-4k does sound a bit dear. Might be worth a referral to an orthodontist (Which might cost in the orderof 100 quid privately) for his expert opinion, so that you know exactly what it would involve, and cost.

Bear in mind that orthodontic treatment takes quite a while (A couple of years or more) and the orthodontist would almost certainly be hapy for you to pay the bill as you went along, rather than all up front.

Toothsmith

r_moore04 wrote: »

i just want my teeth straight, im not bothered about my jaw yet, soo i dont think it would be cosmetic

You can't just concentrate on the teeth and pay no regard to where the jaw is.

It would be like building a square building on triangular foundations. If the two don't go together, then it will fail.

r_moore04

i was offered the treatment when i was younger but coz i was little and didnt no what i was doing i never used the thing that i was told to use, so the orthodontist said theres no point if im not going to use it, and he stopped seeing me, i was stupid back then, but i guess now i have to pay for it, im going to the dentist in 2 weeks time soo im going see how to get everything started then

Eagle_1

How do you find out how long the waiting lists are to be seen by orthodontist, we are waiting for an appointment for daughter who is aged 12.

Toothsmith

Eagle_1 wrote: »

How do you find out how long the waiting lists are to be seen by orthodontist, we are waiting for an appointment for daughter who is aged 12.

Ring them up?

Eagle_1

Toothsmith wrote: »

Ring them up?

lol, fairly obvious really

In my defence though all I know is she has to see an orthodontist but where, or which one I dont know
So called the dentist and they are going to find out for me, thanks

anguk

Eagle_1 wrote: »

How do you find out how long the waiting lists are to be seen by orthodontist, we are waiting for an appointment for daughter who is aged 12.

My daughter was referred to the nearest dental hospital, it was about 2 months before we heard anything and her appointment is next month, so about 3 months in total which is quicker than I thought it would be. I'm not holding out much hope of them doing anything though as they state in the letter that they're happy to see her and give advice but as they've got a shortage of orthodontists they'll only actually treat a very small amount of severe cases and the waiting list is very long. I'll know more when we go next month but I've got a feeling we'll be having to make the choice of finding about £2,000 :eek: or leaving her teeth as they are. It's her top front teeth that have the problem so I've already started to have a look at private orthodontists and there is a good one about 40 miles away who do "plans" that allow you to pay £100 a month over 18 months but they still have a waiting list of up to a year! Even £100 a month is going to be a struggle, OH is disabled & I'm his carer so we live on benefits.

I really feel strongly about the mess that the goverment has made of NHS dentistry, if someone needs treatment they should be able to get it, especially if they're a child and entitled to NHS treatment.