Metal Mouth Message Board

Hi - I think you are worrying unnecessarily. Mine has snapped before (coincidentally on Christmas Day last year), and I ended up taking it out as it was ‘flapping’ around my mouth (that was trickier than I thought it would be). It was replaced at the next appointment and my orthodontist thought noth...

Your teeth look fine to me. Unless you have some functional problems I can’t see a reason why you should get braces. Best to voice your concerns with your dentist first, who will let you know if you need to be referred to an orthodontist.

Teeth can be cleaned with or without the wire on. It doesn’t really get in the way. You’re the paying customer. I would just tell them to leave it on and clean around it.

No, the jaw isn’t placed into a final position. As assertives mentioned the elastics are just anchored onto the lower back teeth and the tension will pull your overjet back. I’m guessing the lower jaw may move forward a little as well? Although no one seems to want them, elastics really do their wor...

@assertives - Great results! You must be pleased.

I personally started out with covering all my back brackets and some of the ones with hooks with the wax every night before going to bed. I’ve got linguals so this hasn’t been an issue, but a couple of months ago I had a small brace placed on the outside of a molar and wisdom tooth. The intention h...

I second kplatt2010... having elastics is all part-and-parcel of having braces. I didn’t want them at first either, but they make drastic changes in only a few months. I personally have reduced my protrusion by 4mm in only four months. My orthodontist was talking about removing them after Christmas,...

Hi - In no way do your teeth look like other people’s teeth before they get braces. I can’t see any issues, no visible overbite, and unlike the other comment I don’t think your teeth are either slanted or that you need a widening of the arch. Has your orthodontist ever said as much? Your teeth look ...

I agree with @wendydong, it's unlikely anyone will ever notice a midline being off by a few mm. Look at Tom Cruise, no one noticed his midline for years. Like Wendy, I too didn't even know of the term until I started on this site... and lo-and-behold, mine is off by 2 or 3 mm as well. I doesn't both...

When you mentioned surgery I thought there would be some big issues with your teeth, but after looking at your photos in an earlier thread I can’t see any real problems that would warrant surgery. I am guessing you are in the US? If so, it seems it’s almost the norm to offer surgery even when it’s n...

As it was a one-off dose you might be ok, and three days prior to your op puts you in a good position... Having said that, only your surgeon will be able to say one way or the other. Good luck!

I think it’s just by visual checks. I’m not sure if it gets any more scientific than that.

If you bend any piece of metal enough times it will eventually break, but if it’s only by a short distance it should be ok. In some respects it’s pointless worrying about it as it may never happen. Is the issue that your elastic is popping off when it moves to the upwards position, or are you just c...

@wendydong - Saying “I guess I don’t want to scare you...” then proceeding to do exactly that is not very helpful. The OP seems to be aware of the negatives in their post. I’ve noticed for a while that your posts are largely negative and that you appear to have had a terrible experience. However, it...

Maybe ask to speak in private, and explain your concerns before getting de-braced. I personally, cannot see any obvious protrusion from the front. Your teeth look good to me, but it is you who needs to be happy with the results. One thing for sure, if you don’t ask you don’t get! So make sure you ge...