| Welcome to The New Coffee Room. We hope you enjoy your visit. You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free. Join our community! If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features: |
| Those with braces experience; opinions, please | |
|---|---|
| Tweet Topic Started: Jan 11 2011, 01:25 PM (1,789 Views) | |
| RosemaryTwo | Jan 11 2011, 01:25 PM Post #1 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
My 12-year-old had a consultation recently and the orthodontist recommended one of these to correct a mild/moderate overbite. The thing looks awful to me but he said they are quite common and preferred over the head gear, which was popular when I was a kid. Just curious if any of you or your children have had one. Thought? |
| "Perhaps the thing to do is just to let stupid run its course." Aqua | |
![]() |
|
| RosemaryTwo | Jan 11 2011, 01:28 PM Post #2 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
A better angle. Called a Herbst appliance.
|
| "Perhaps the thing to do is just to let stupid run its course." Aqua | |
![]() |
|
| sue | Jan 11 2011, 01:33 PM Post #3 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
gadzooks. So all that metal stays in their mouth, or is it removable? My son went through the headgear thing (after school and at night) and I know he hated it, esp. sleeping, but I'm not sure that this would be a walk in the park either. Is this something really new? hmm, a quick google doesn't paint a pretty picture. Is this maybe just much faster working than older methods, and therefore an option but not the only route to take?
Edited by sue, Jan 11 2011, 01:46 PM.
|
![]() |
|
| George K | Jan 11 2011, 01:48 PM Post #4 |
|
Finally
|
How hard is it to be hygienic with that contraption? |
|
A guide to GKSR: Click "Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08 Nothing is as effective as homeopathy. I'd rather listen to an hour of Abba than an hour of The Beatles. - Klaus, 4/29/18 | |
![]() |
|
| Piano*Dad | Jan 11 2011, 01:50 PM Post #5 |
|
Bull-Carp
|
Both of my kids went through braces, though not of that sort. I remember that the first orthodontist recommended head gear. We sought a second opinion, and that second opinion was that the first opinion was dead wrong overkill. |
![]() |
|
| Mark | Jan 11 2011, 01:52 PM Post #6 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
Mild to moderate overbite? Leave it alone. |
|
___.___ (_]===* o 0 When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells | |
![]() |
|
| RosemaryTwo | Jan 11 2011, 01:53 PM Post #7 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
I don't have answers -- just collecting information now. My belief is that it stays anchored though for 6mos to a year. I don't think hygiene is a problem more than ordinary braces. I want to research my options here. I'd like to find someone with experience. I had a palate expander as a kid. Similarly hideous looking. |
| "Perhaps the thing to do is just to let stupid run its course." Aqua | |
![]() |
|
| Kincaid | Jan 11 2011, 02:00 PM Post #8 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
So did my youngest - at about age 5 or 6. Maybe they are different now - while it covered most of the palate, the idea of it was worse to me. Ack! We had to crank it every night on the top and bottom. As a kid forced to use head gear (thankfully not in public), I think I'd still prefer the thing pictured above. Works 24 hrs a day and is not that visible. Best advice though, get another opinion or two. All three of our daughters need(ed) orthodontics, but the palate expander was the most intrusive thing they had to do. |
| Kincaid - disgusted Republican Partisan since 2006. | |
![]() |
|
| RosemaryTwo | Jan 11 2011, 02:03 PM Post #9 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
I don't have answers -- just collecting information now. My belief is that it stays anchored though for 6mos to a year. I don't think hygiene is a problem more than ordinary braces. I want to research my options here. I'd like to find someone with experience. I had a palate expander as a kid. Similarly hideous looking. |
| "Perhaps the thing to do is just to let stupid run its course." Aqua | |
![]() |
|
| VPG | Jan 11 2011, 02:10 PM Post #10 |
|
Pisa-Carp
|
I have had an overbite for ever and lived through it, and I'm cute as hell. So leave it alone. Guy's with overbite are better kissers. You can look it up.
|
|
I'M NOT YELLING.........I'M ITALIAN...........THAT'S HOW WE TALK! "People say that we're in a time when there are no heroes, they just don't know where to look." Ronald Reagan, Inaugural, 1971 | |
![]() |
|
| KlavierBauer | Jan 11 2011, 02:12 PM Post #11 |
![]()
HOLY CARP!!!
|
All of my siblings and I had "mild to moderate" overbites growing up, and were all supposed to have braces. None of us did, and all but me wound up with perfectly straight teeth. Mine were fine growing up, and didn't become less straight until adulthood, after my wisdom teeth came in. I've never had those removed, and my overbite is nothing that's ever been mentioned by a dentist as a potential problem, so I don't think it was/is anything to be corrected. Your situation, clearly, may be different, but in my experience growing up, we were all told to solve problems with orthodontics, that ended up solving themselves. |
|
"I realize you want him to touch you all over and give you babies, but his handling of the PR side really did screw the pooch." - Ivory Thumper "He said sleepily: "Don't worry mom, my dick is like hot logs in the morning." - Apple | |
![]() |
|
| KlavierBauer | Jan 11 2011, 02:13 PM Post #12 |
![]()
HOLY CARP!!!
|
VPG really hits on something there. You can ask Mrs.KB, but she'll tell you that my mouth is perfectly kissable - preferably so even. |
|
"I realize you want him to touch you all over and give you babies, but his handling of the PR side really did screw the pooch." - Ivory Thumper "He said sleepily: "Don't worry mom, my dick is like hot logs in the morning." - Apple | |
![]() |
|
| sue | Jan 11 2011, 02:30 PM Post #13 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
I dunno. But for a mild to moderate overbite, that device seems like overkill. The reports of the sores in the mouth, the unhinging of the appliance when opening the mouth wide (yawning), the trouble eating and speaking, the drooling...may all be exaggerated, but I'd wonder if that much inconvenience is really necessary. I would certainly get some second opinions. Vince, I too have a mild overbite, and wished desperately for it to be fixed when I was younger. People said I was cute too, but I wanted to be beautiful, not cute!
|
![]() |
|
| RosemaryTwo | Jan 11 2011, 02:43 PM Post #14 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
The orthodontist doesn't want to install anything until this summer, so I have some time. I will get a second opinion and hopefully find someone with some first-hand experience. I would love it if this could be fixed through a less-intrusive means. |
| "Perhaps the thing to do is just to let stupid run its course." Aqua | |
![]() |
|
| RosemaryTwo | Jan 11 2011, 02:54 PM Post #15 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
And my very scientific research started where else? TNCR. |
| "Perhaps the thing to do is just to let stupid run its course." Aqua | |
![]() |
|
| Aqua Letifer | Jan 11 2011, 02:58 PM Post #16 |
|
ZOOOOOM!
|
Not to brag, but I've never met anyone else who has had more dental/orthodontal work and/or oral surgery than I. I've even donated my own blood to myself on a number of occasions to prepare for the surgeries. I'd say a mild to moderate overbite may cause problems over time, but unless there are considerable problems now, or there could be considerable problems later on (TMJ, impacted teeth, whatever), leave it alone. After my second oral surgery I was given something else to wear in my mouth to do the fine-tuning afterward. (This was opposed to the handful of things I had rubber cemented inside of my mouth, that had to be adjusted with a metal key every so often.) It cost a couple thousand dollars and I threw that ****er in the trash. I made it very clear to my parents that any other dental device would receive the same. I was done. Dentist visits are a joke to me now, I don't see how people get freaked out over a couple shots of Novocaine. |
| I cite irreconcilable differences. | |
![]() |
|
| sue | Jan 11 2011, 03:43 PM Post #17 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
Ah that's good. I am now remembering when my kid first got his braces (or maybe it was the retainer), he talked funny for a bit. Be nice to get that part over with while not in school. Can't remember how long it lasted, but it was not funny (to him). |
![]() |
|
| Qaanaaq-Liaaq | Jan 12 2011, 07:10 AM Post #18 |
![]()
Senior Carp
|
Just think... With the Herbst, your son will be able to bite through steel cable just like the iron jawed “Jaws” character in James Bond movies. I don’t know about a Herbst but I can tell you all about an orthodontic headgear. I wore one for two years starting at age 12. It’s not a big deal and it doesn’t require any major life readjustments. I had to wear it at night for about 10 hours a day. It requires you to sleep on your back. A headgear alleviates the overcrowding of teeth in the upper jaw. Don’t know if they’re installed on the lower jaw. The headgear slips into brackets mounted to the braces on the 1st or 2nd molars. It moves the molars back in the jaw gradually over a long period of time. The end result is that there’ll be more room for the teeth in front of the molars. Ask the orthodontist what the pros and cons are of both the Herbst and headgear. Ask if he installs both of them. Ask him if you have a choice. You’re going to have to trust your orthodontist’s judgement. |
![]() |
|
| RosemaryTwo | Jan 12 2011, 07:52 AM Post #19 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
Thanks, QL. I imagine there would be a benefit to something you can take on and off. |
| "Perhaps the thing to do is just to let stupid run its course." Aqua | |
![]() |
|
| Lisa | Jan 12 2011, 12:53 PM Post #20 |
|
Junior Carp
|
My daughter is 9 and has been doing the ortho thing since last spring. She had a pretty bad overbite and long narrow palate due to a history of thumb sucking. We were given the choice of the herbst appliance or traditional headgear to correct the overbite (she was getting the palate expander either way). We did quite a bit of research and went with the traditional headgear. The Herbst (at least how our dr. was going to do it) is removable and that was one of its advantages -- it is much easier to clean around/brush teeth than traditional braces. But it also means that it has to come out for every meal and has the potential for getting lost/thrown out/etc. The traditional headgear attaches to bands around the back teeth - my daughter also has 4 braces on her top 4 front teeth to pull them back into place. This is much harder to brush around and she is having some gum irritation from not getting things completely clean (common with braces), but it's not a big deal. She needs to wear the headgear for 10 continuous hours a day - we aim to get it in by 9pm and out by 7am, so no one outside the family has ever seen her wear it. I don't think she would have agreed if she had to wear it to school or outside the house. The doctor we spoke to said both give good results. The reason we opted for the traditional headgear over the herbst was that when I did some research, it seemed that the herbst has been linked to problems with the jaw joint - TMJ, etc. It works by sort of forcing your lower jaw forward and supposedly that can cause abnormal forces on the joint that lead to later problems. The traditional headgear works by pulling your upper jaw backwards -- kind of holding it steady while the lower jaw catches up in growth. I will say that I am extremely pleased with the results we have gotten so far -- her teeth and side profile are greatly improved. Now our situation may be different than yours in that my daughter was younger -- this is only phase 1 of her treatment -- she will need braces again when she is 12 or 13 and has all her permanent teeth. And the thing we are doing now (correcting her palate and jaw alignment) can only be done while her bones are still actively growing -- we were told we had to start before puberty so it may be too late for this for your son. I will say that I had braces when I was 12 or 13 -- I also had a big overbite due to thumb sucking and in my case (this was before the days when they did this phase-1 treatment at age 8 or 9), I had several teeth pulled to create space in my mouth and then a traditional round of braces to pull everything backwards. My teeth are beautiful now and you can't tell I ever had an overbite. So there are probably other ways to treat your son's overbite (though I wouldnt' call what I went through "less intrusive", LOL!) My advice would be to go to several orthodontists -- you'll find that each one will probably recommend a different course of treatment. They usually offer free consultations so it doesn't hurt to get a few different opinions. I found that some orthos are used-car-salesman-slimey so it pays to shop around. And defintely ask your son's dentist if he has an opinion -- when I narrowed it down to two different doctors, I called my daughter's dentist, told him what each doc was recommending, and he helped me decide what would be best. Good luck! Edited by Lisa, Jan 12 2011, 12:57 PM.
|
![]() |
|
| RosemaryTwo | Jan 12 2011, 01:05 PM Post #21 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
Thank you, Lisa. I really appreciate you sharing your insight and experience. I plan to seek some more professional opinions. My dentist is also involved and recommended this orthodontist. It sounds like we both had palate expanders as kids? I really hated that thing and it was disturbing to have that thrust upon me. Although now, as an adult, I am grateful for having that behind me. I have so many mixed feelings. |
| "Perhaps the thing to do is just to let stupid run its course." Aqua | |
![]() |
|
| Kincaid | Jan 12 2011, 01:47 PM Post #22 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
Interesting! I never knew this. It didn't occur to me (in Jr. High) how it worked. My wife's sister needed some kind of appliance to get her lower jaw to grow - sounds like it must have been a Herbst thingy. Lisa, my youngest also has to have two phases of orthodontics, but they need to wait for her second one to be after all growth has pretty much stopped, as they need to add an extra tooth in the front at the top (not the middle two but the next one over) because she did not have the adult tooth there. |
| Kincaid - disgusted Republican Partisan since 2006. | |
![]() |
|
| Qaanaaq-Liaaq | Jan 12 2011, 01:50 PM Post #23 |
![]()
Senior Carp
|
I had silver railroad tracks on my teeth. Nowadays, you can have them in white. Inquire about the orthodontist’s appointment availability schedule. Your son will have to visit him about every 2-3 weeks to have bands tightened/adjusted. Your son may have to take off from school if his weekday evening and Saturday appointments are booked solid. Does your city have a university with a college of dentistry? If so, then check out their orthodontics clinic. There might be a waiting list. Fees are lower because student orthodocs do the work but their work is checked by their professors. |
![]() |
|
| Lisa | Jan 12 2011, 02:14 PM Post #24 |
|
Junior Carp
|
No, I never had the palate expander. My teeth were way too big for my jaw on both top and bottom and so were crazy crowded (my four bottom front teeth were stacked 2 in front of the other 2!). They might have been able to fix the top with a palate expander, but I don't think they can do anythign about the bottom except yank teeth to make space. So I had my four smallest molar-looking teeth (I think they call them premolars) extracted and they used the extra space to yank the rest of my teeth back. I never had headgear either -- just rubber bands. My daughter did have a palate expander but it was pretty tiny -- maybe a half inch wide strip across the back of the roof of her mouth. We had to turn it every day for 2 weeks, then they locked it into place for a few months, then they took it out. Except for the first day or two when we had to give her some advil to help with the achiness, she didn't seem to mind it at all. |
![]() |
|
| RosemaryTwo | Jan 12 2011, 03:13 PM Post #25 |
|
HOLY CARP!!!
|
My kids seem perfect to me. ; ) I want to give them every advantage I can. Sigh. I know it will be fine in the end. |
| "Perhaps the thing to do is just to let stupid run its course." Aqua | |
![]() |
|
![]() Join the millions that use us for their forum communities. Create your own forum today. Learn More · Sign-up Now |
|
| « Previous Topic · The New Coffee Room · Next Topic » |






Is this maybe just much faster working than older methods, and therefore an option but not the only route to take?



11:23 AM Jul 11