Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

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parsleysage
Posts: 351
Joined: Tue Mar 18, 2014 10:42 am
Location: Virginia

Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#1 Post by parsleysage »

Hey folks! I am interested in getting braces to fix the spacing issues in my teeth seen here: http://imgur.com/a/d2KD8. (Wide spacing in front, extremely narrow in back.) I also have several crooked teeth (7, 10, 11, 23, 26) that are hard to tell they are crooked due to the wide spacing, lol! Additionally, I think I may have a very slight underbite. For all these reasons I am hoping to get braces. Note: I have not been examined by an orthodontist yet. Soon I hope!

Until recently I haven't been to the dentist in many years. I had an emergency extraction and need a crown on tooth 5. Next week I am going in for an exam and x-rays. I am sure the x-rays will turn up plenty of cavities to be filled which may take a few appointments. After that I plan to go to the ortho for a consult.

How will the dentist/orthodontist determine whether my teeth are healthy enough for braces? I am scared I will be turned away because my teeth are in bad shape. I am hoping that if I get the necessary fillings and the crown that I will be okay to get the braces.

Most people I see with braces have basically healthy teeth that look smooth and shiny - I haven't seen people in braces who have decayed teeth like mine. Does anyone on this site have experience with this? I really want the braces not for cosmetic reasons but to correct the spacing problems so that brushing and flossing will have a maximum effect as well as minimizing any further chipping/wear on my teeth so that I never have to have any of them pulled again.

Thanks for any advice!

chichi
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Location: East Coast, USA

Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#2 Post by chichi »

Your teeth don't look that bad in the pictures. I obviously can't see all the cavities, but I don't think your teeth look significantly worse off than the rest of us. Once you're all set with crowns/fillings, you may or may not end up needing a visit with a periodontist. Since you haven't been to the dentist in a long time, we don't know what state your gums are in.

My personal, non-dentist opinion, is that you'll probably be able to get braces eventually, but you may need to take care of some things before they give you the green light.

Regardless, your dentist and ortho will be able to determine what's best. I don't think we can really answer these questions for you.
Had Damons (ceramic upper, metal lower) from June 27, 2013 - January 20, 2015
15-18 month sentence, official time in braces was 18 months, 3 weeks, 3 days
My Story: http://www.archwired.com/phpbb2/viewtop ... =9&t=45054

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parsleysage
Posts: 351
Joined: Tue Mar 18, 2014 10:42 am
Location: Virginia

Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#3 Post by parsleysage »

[quote="chichi"]Your teeth don't look that bad in the pictures. I obviously can't see all the cavities, but I don't think your teeth look significantly worse off than the rest of us. Once you're all set with crowns/fillings, you may or may not end up needing a visit with a periodontist. Since you haven't been to the dentist in a long time, we don't know what state your gums are in.

My personal, non-dentist opinion, is that you'll probably be able to get braces eventually, but you may need to take care of some things before they give you the green light.

Regardless, your dentist and ortho will be able to determine what's best. I don't think we can really answer these questions for you.[/quote]

Yes, I am definitely concerned about needing perio treatment too. I have been learning so much about hygiene and doing c-shaped flossing religiously and there was bleeding the first few days but no more now, so I am hoping that means it's just mild gingivitis and will resolve with continued hygiene.

I definitely understand only a professional can evaluate my case. Thank you for your input, I really appreciate the advice! I guess I was just hoping to encounter some others who didn't have great hygiene before braces but were able to turn things around, get braces, and improve their dental health. Thanks again. :)

jb1231
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Joined: Fri Feb 21, 2014 10:39 pm

Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#4 Post by jb1231 »

Your dentist and orthodontist will have to work together. I would think if something is wrong, your dentist would communicate that with your ortho, and your ortho should be able to have an idea!

Also, get everything taken care of beforehand and always get your cleanings!

I have quite a few fillings and I get cleaning every 6 months which I think is about the norm.

sirwired
Posts: 2104
Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2008 10:05 am

Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#5 Post by sirwired »

It's all going to depend on the shape of your gums and attaching bone; crowns and fillings aren't an issue. (Although if you have any composite fillings on the outer surface of your molars, the ortho may choose to use a band instead of a bracket.)

Your general dentist can easily evaluate your gums by taking a panorex and/or bitewings and performing a routine oral exam. If your general dentist clears you for braces, make sure they send your x-rays to whatever ortho(s) you consult with. (Or, alternatively, ask your dentist to let you have the x-rays on a USB stick that you provide them...)

nikkibabie19
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Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#6 Post by nikkibabie19 »

Basically when u go to have the cavities takrn care of and the crown your dentist will do a full exam once he knows u plan to get braces. He will highlight anything else that needs to be addressed before starting your treatment.

Thats how it was for me. I went to do an extraction that my ortho ordered. And the dentist told me that I had a few cavities to be filled before I can have my braces put on. So I did that in a couple of appointments then went back to the ortho to start treatment.

Hope that helps.
Age: 23; Gender: Female; Where: Caribbean


Me with elastics : http://www.archwired.com/phpbb2/viewtop ... 13&t=46327

FINALLY Me after braces : http://www.archwired.com/phpbb2/viewtop ... 13&t=46650
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rowo
Posts: 33
Joined: Fri Feb 07, 2014 7:51 am

Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#7 Post by rowo »

Years ago I saw an ortho for an initial consult, who told me that I should address some issues before commencing treatment and referred me to a periodontist and TMJ specialist.

My periodontist cleared me for braces after under a year. However TMJ maintenance took a while longer.

I think that even if your teeth aren't ready for braces, it's good to get the ball rolling to healthier and cleaner teeth anyway, and braces can go on sometime in the future. It's been a very long process for me, but I am imagining the endpoint, and don't regret my decision at all.

WiredOldLady
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Joined: Fri Sep 06, 2013 9:01 pm
Location: Arizona

Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#8 Post by WiredOldLady »

When I went for my ortho consult, I hadn't been to the dentist in awhile. All I needed was a really good cleaning before I got my braces on. Admittedly, that had a lot to do with being lazy with my oral care routine. Now...I'm a brushing, flossing fool! I have an appointment next month for a cleaning and I have a feeling it will be a breeze!

My husband is thinking about getting his teeth done but he's got a whole lot of issues that need to be addressed first, including bone loss. At the ortho consult, they'll probably tell you what you need to do before you can get braced.
Braces off on 8/26/14 after a year!

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parsleysage
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Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#9 Post by parsleysage »

Thank you everyone for your replies! Now that my extraction is healed up I am really excited to finally see the dentist on Monday so I can know exactly what shape my mouth is in and what steps I need to take toward better teeth and gum health!

I know for sure I will need some fillings. Depending on the results of my perio evaluation I might need scaling too. (To me and my google- I will take care of all of that before I schedule the ortho consult. I am going to ask the dentist what she thinks about my oral health and if braces might be a good option. After that I will schedule the consult and see what the ortho thinks! If they give me any homework I would obviously take care of that for as long as needed. I am hoping that within a month or two I will know if I will be able to get braces soon or if I will need to wait and continue building up my oral health.

This board is great and I have learned so much in a brief period of time. Thanks for having me!

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parsleysage
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Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#10 Post by parsleysage »

Oops I must have eaten part of a sentence! I was going to say "(To me and my google-trained eyes my gums look okay as they are not red or puffy and now that I have been flossing and brushing regularly there is no bleeding, but of course this needs to be evaluated by a professional.)"

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parsleysage
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Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#11 Post by parsleysage »

Welp after going through a lot of the braces journals in the "My Braces Story" part of the forum I have to say I am a lot more optimistic and feeling better. There are some folks in that forum with teeth that look pretty close to mine in terms of wear and tear. I also found out that it's common on the molars to do a banded bracket - that is one of the things I was concerned about as I have an abfraction on a molar (basically non-cavity "lesion" or in more normal terms like chipped/missing enamel on the outside) so I was worried about the bracket sticking to that but now that I know it can be banded I feel better. I also did the "ice test" on myself last night and all my teeth responded well haha :lol: I'm a weirdo I know!! :crazy: You have no idea the stuff I google haha!

So other than filling cavities and potentially any gum issues I am hoping I will be given the go ahead to at least schedule the consult and see what the ortho says! I realize I don't really need my dentist's permission as my insurance doesn't require a referral but I really like my dentist, she is the first one I went to after 4 years of neglecting my teeth and she was amazing with me and so understanding and professional, so I really want to work with her as a team and get her professional opinion which I will probably respect 100%.

oimysizex
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Location: UK

Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#12 Post by oimysizex »

My teeth were in a much worse condition! Really bad had holes in EVERY TOOTH, most closed up by using a prescription toothpaste, these were very small cavities, but I had some massive ones that needed a lot of fillings! My teeth are now getting there and I've not had to have any dental treatment in 2 years (apart from ortho)

Once you have your yeeth fixed in terms of fillings and extractions ect, your teeth will be fine then for braces and hopefully you will not need any more treatment. However my ortho
Did say that teeth with fillings crowns are weaker than the rest of the teeth but I haven't had any problems whatsoever !!!

Good luck!!
Image

Been in braces foreverrrrrrrrrrrrr!!

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parsleysage
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Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#13 Post by parsleysage »

Well I am super excited to report that my dentist reported 4 cavities to treat and 3 to watch! For some that might seem like a lot but over the last few weeks I had worked myself up into a ball of anxiety thinking I'd need so many things done, root canals, crowns, etc. After 5 years of a severe soda addiction and little to no OH I can't believe it's only 4 cavities! I haven't had my full perio evaluation yet but she surveyed around and said no deep pockets so I shouldn't need SRP, just continued good flossing habits! She gave me an rx toothpaste and when I get my cleaning I'm going to get a fluoride varnish.

And, she is good with me getting braces! She wants me to do Invisalign because their office does it but I'm more leaning towards traditional braces done by an orthodontist. She said my premolar extraction gap is too big to close but honestly I really disagree with her there even though I feel bad saying that. I read oldfart's braces story and he got a TAD implant to help close a molar gap. That is definitely what I want to do if possible! Maybe she has other reasoning she didn't explain to me. But we will see!

Oooooh I am just so excited now! :dance: I scheduled a consult with an ortho for this Friday at 9! I will start my own thread in the stories forum at that point but just wanted to update this in case anyone comes across it. Thanks guys!!!

TheKT
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Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#14 Post by TheKT »

Congrats!!

Norrie
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Joined: Sat Oct 05, 2013 5:44 pm

Re: Not sure if my teeth are healthy enough for braces?

#15 Post by Norrie »

Congrats!

After dealing with some dental issues in my teens, I've been really diligent about brushing and flossing. I also get my teeth cleaned three times a year instead of two, and I swear that extra cleaning makes all the difference in keeping things on the up and up.

But the number one thing that I'm going to recommend is getting yourself a WaterPik, and using it once in the morning, and again at night. I've only had mine for four months, but my dental hygienist (who knows me well) cannot get over how healthy my gums and teeth are. So even though I have braces behind my teeth, which can be really awkward to brush well, my mouth is the healthiest that it's ever been. I wish that I had gotten one years ago and used it daily.
I also can't believe how clean my mouth feels after using it.
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