Metal Mouth Message Board

Mine pushed like crazy for a few days, then I didn't notice them much. After the springs opened up they were kind of "done" and then just held things in place. I had 2 sets for about 4 months total, so set #2 was like getting set #1 all over again. They do work quickly!

The shock doctor blue braces mouthguard works pretty well. With kickboxing you might need the double one, just try both and see how they do for you. The braces model has a groove the brackets mostly fit into, and is made to be kind of soft and adaptable to your changing bite and teeth positions, (no...

How do the teeth "know" which ones are supposed to be following the elastics? They don't. The elastics pull from each attachment point with the same force and all the teeth involved will move to some degree. The trick is in the anchorage of the teeth, how many roots they have and how much...

The first couple sets of wires are thin and springy and like to come out of the band tubes. Just be patient with them and try the tweezer trick if you are up for it. The later wires will stay in much better.

Braced teeth tend to move into new positions faster and with less discomfort if they are kept clean along with the gum tissue. So the extra time and effort to floss is well worth it!

Totally. The brackets, hooks, and stuff need to dig out a spot to fit in and wax can slow the process down. After 2 years in braces my cheeks are pretty much immune to the hardware. Try to only use wax as a very last resort and you will be better off in the long run.

Is anyone else bothered by the Invisalign for teen ads? I have been seeing them more frequently and they are starting to get under my skin. Their attempt show that traditional braces on teens as being weird or geeky is like a throwback to the 1950's or something. When I was in middle/high school bra...

I haven't changed my eating very much, but there has been some periods after adjustments or whatever that crunchy stuff was not worth the effort. As your teeth get used to being moved around eating gets much easier. Also, I noticed the springy wires in the beginning were more annoying because when f...

My understanding is that although the molars are affected by the forces from the elastics, molars have more roots so they will win the tug-o-war between them and the less rooted canines. As you guessed, your doc is probably playing it safe by using wimpy elastics to affect the molars even less and g...

Wire ties are old school, but in a good way! My understanding is that they offer low friction and super control over the archwire, they can tighten a tie more or less depending on how much movement is desired. The downside is that they take much longer to place than o rings or doors, so the dentist ...

Mine opened up too, and was clamped back down with vertical elastics. Worked like a champ!

Many handy products are made these days out of cadaver tissue, such as bone screws, pins, and fascia grafts. There are processes to remove the factors from the tissue so there is no immune/transplant reaction. The tissue becomes incorporated into the patient's body as opposed to something made out o...

If a molar band gets loose, crud can get up underneath and cause a weird taste. Try brushing/flossing extra around any bands and see if that makes a difference, since a loose band should be taken care of sooner than later. On the other hand, I have heard people mentioning a "metallic" tast...

Congrats on your debrace! Just curious though, did you get Invisalign aligners, (which cause movement via a changing series of trays), or are they Essex retainers? The essix retainers look pretty much like invisalign trays and are easy to mistake the two. The difference is the essix retainers simply...

The looseness is creepy but kind of fun in a way. It tends to come and go in different areas over time, and I found that when they get loose the soreness is greatly reduced, so bonus! Loose also usually means on the move, (to a better place), so double bonus!