braces ruined my sons face

[smiley1011]

I am sorry to be another dissatisfied and angry person on here, but my son had retractive orthodontics and his face became so much more unattractive. He now has jowls, and pushed back jaw, the side of his cheekbones grew very wide and the bottom of his cheeks are gone. He now looks like a mouth breather. I am consumed with guilt and am trying to find a functional orthodontist to help fix some of this mess. Whatever is fixable. At very least his bottom jaw needs to be pulled out of his neck. Oh yeah, and now he snores. Has anyone had any success fixing any of this. I know there are many of us out here looking for answers. Please advise if you can
Thanks

[Clare1]

Sounds like your son has had a horrific experience. Really hope you can find a specialist to help

[bubba3000]

you need to find a orthodontist who can reverse it, braces messed my face up too and I am trying to find a orthodontist in London who can reverse the procedure and open the gaps for me...I understand what your going thru I am going thru depression and taking medication because of what they done to me with the braces from a younger age

[Murcatko]

Swelling can be caused by mouth and lisp being irritated by the braces - it should go after few days though.
The point is orthodontic treatment is to make the smile AND face more esthetic - it can be different during the treatment though, but if you have any worries, you should consult other orthodontist so you don't make the issue worse (which unfortunately can happen with some/few orthodontists). And snoring is caused by difficulties with breathing, which should not be the case with orthodontic treatment. Snoring decreases the quality of sleep, so you should also check with your doctor. Hope it will go well for you and your son!

[bubba3000]

it does not make the face more aesthetic, it makes it worse since it pulls the maxilla back and the lower jaw back which leaves the patient with a narrow smile and small chin..this is opposite of good aeshetics

[bimax101]

sorry to hear of the experience you had with your sons treatment.

I find it really worrying that so many people share similar stories about the treatments they've had and the outcomes have been so unsatisfactory.
In reference to the snoring you mention a good point to start would be answering the question below.

Did he use to ever snore before the treatment?
Has he gained any significant bodyweight since between now and when he initially started the braces treatment?
Does he wake up tired or unrefreshed?

Answers to the questions above should help identify whether you son has bigger problem then just the aesthetics to worry about, in which case you really should consult both a ENT and Orthodontist in my opinion.

Snoring is usually a symptomatic sign of an underlying respiratory issue that can be can be caused by narrowing of the airway. Airways can be narrow because due to a recessed positioned jaw.

[doover1]

I totally get it. My sonś face was also damaged as a result of his braces.
My sonś retractive braces pushed his maxilla / lower face back by inches - narrowing his airway so much that he required Orthognathic surgery to correct
the structural problems with the face and widen his airway to a normal diameter. In fact, my son needed 2 surgeries.

It sounds like your son´s face was retracted significantly, enough to alter the chin position and the aesthetics, and to cause snoring. Snoring is not just
an annoyance. It indicates a potentially serious problem with his airway. It is very important that you get him assessed by someone who can properly evaluate him and help you along on your son´s healing journey.

I wonder where you are located. I would highly recommend Dr William Hang, at facefocused orthodontics. He is against ALL retractive orthodontics and will give your son a good evaluation and let you know if your son can be significantly improved without surgery. Patients come to him from all over the US. !!

If he does need surgery- I recommend Dr Larry Wolford in Dallas, TX. He is wonderful.
It is possible to advance the chin without improving the airway if the doctor does not fully understand the mechanics. There are only a few doctors in the country that Dr Hang recommends. Dr Wolford is so skilled that the recovery from surgery was fast and quite amazing. His care and skill is exceptional. He sees so many kids damaged in this way.

My son has regained his health and energy and his life. He is 17 now. He was 13 1/2 when braces were placed on him. It has been a very long and difficult road to recovery. Sadly, my son´s face, originally, was handsome and well balanced with wonderful bone structure. The loss of his good looks has been very hard on him emotionally and a great loss for me as well. Although Dr Wolford improved his facial balance in profile, his face is now much more narrow, no cheekbones, narrow mouth and shorter nose... only his eyes and forhead look the same.

Good luck to you. I can relate so much to your pain and to your guilt also.
There are knowledgeable, caring and helpful people out there...I wish you and your son the best.

[SSV]

I’m sorry to hear that. I’m going through the same thing and looking for someone to reverse the retraction. My research showed me that “functional orthodontists” are what you should be looking for. They are skilled in moving the mandible forward in a lot of cases non surgicaly by using devices. I had a long distance consult with dr hang but I’m not sure I can commit to the travel to Cali all the time. Best of luck.

[MoSiNoVe]

[quote=bubba3000 post_id=501582 time=1523919264 user_id=31637]
you need to find a orthodontist who can reverse it, braces messed my face up too and I am trying to find a orthodontist in London who can reverse the procedure and open the gaps for me...I understand what your going thru I am going thru depression and taking medication because of what they done to me with the braces from a younger age
[/quote]

Did you find something?