Fastbraces / 6 Month Smiles / Traditional Ortho

[KMC]

Like a lot of people, I've been using this forum to start off my braces journey. It has been so helpful reading about your experiences and sharing all your ups and downs. Although I am still to decide which option to take, I thought I'd share my story so far.

I am a 40 year old single mum from south east England, have always been uphappy with my teeth and more than likely should have had orthodontics as a child.

I really didn't want to post these pictures of my teeth, but it has been so helpful seeing all yours - so here goes:



I have got an overbite, overjet, off centre midline and crowding - I had an impacted pre-molar removed about 5 years ago and I think that is why my midline is so off. My back bite is fine - these pictures were taken with me biting down.

Thanks to a very generous 40th birthday pressie from my fantastic mum, I am now in a position to do something about it. I've had a couple of days holiday this week so I booked 3 consultations.

6 Month Smiles

This is offered by my own dentist, is a cosmetic procedure that only focuses on the "social six" teeth and uses tooth coloured ceramic brackets. She could straighten both upper and lower arches, but could not correct my midline. I would have a fixed/bonded retainer and an Essix retainer at night. Cost is £4083, estimated time is 9 months to 1 year.

Fastbraces

This is another cosmetic procedure, again carried out by a dentist and focuses on the "social six" teeth. Sounds very similar to 6 Month Smiles in that it would straighten both upper and lower arches but not correct the midline. I would have an Essix retainer at night and a fixed retainer if I wanted. Cost is £3000 for metal braces or £4000 for ceramic, free teeth whitening included, estimated time 9 months to 1 year.

Orthodontist

I really thought this was going to be out of my price range, but I managed to find one that offered a free 10 minute consultation (most of them charge) and I was very pleasantly surprised.
They gave me 3 options (all metal brackets):
1. Simple straightening of top arch, no midline correction - £1500, estimated time 6 months
2. Simple straightening of top and bottom arch, no midline correction - £2100, estimated time 12 months (so similar to 6MS and Fastbraces, but a lot cheaper)
3. Correct all the issues with my teeth. This would involve an extraction on my upper left to be able to correct the protrusion of the front teeth and the off centre midline (which makes sense to me as I am a tooth missing on the right). BUT - she said I may have to have 1 or 2 teeth extracted from the bottom if my bite shifts, but she wont know until the treatment is started. The cost of this is £3024, estimated time 2 years.
If I want to discuss it further with the Orthodontist, I would need to book a "record making" appointment where they take x-rays and go into it in much more details. This costs £120 and can be off-set against treatment or the records are mine to take away.

Anyway, I've got quite a bit of thinking to do on this. I will more than likely go with the Orthodontist, but it's whether I go for a cosmetic correction or go for the "whole works" - my main concern with that is I might have to have some bottom teeth extracted.

[djspeece]

Well done and great analysis. Wishing you the best of luck.

[Bikerchick85]

You have beautiful teeth!! I love how you've done your homework. If I were you, I'd go with the ortho and get everything fixed. It is soo worth it!
I agree with the ortho that another tooth needs extracted from the upper arch to even things out. I had 4 teeth extracted for braces and I am thrilled with my results so far! I'm almost done with my treatment. You can check out my pics here http://www.archwired.com/phpbb2/viewtop ... =9&t=43860

My lower canines were blocked out of my arch like yours are. Good luck with whatever you decide! Can't wait to keep up with your progress!!

[Chicken]

I would go with the whole works the orthodontist has prescribed. It will save many issues in the long run. You may want to have a second ortho consult if you can. I am hoping to get my braces off next month and I just turned 50. I am also from the U.K. but live in the USA. Good luck with your decision. Looking forward to following your progress.

[KMC]

Thanks guys, really appreciate it.
Just looked at your stories Bikerchick and Chicken - both are amazing, I bet you are so delighted x

[NeilH]

Hi, it was a good idea to get some options before making your mind up. I would think going to an orthodontist would be the best bet as they will look at so much more than the cosmetic aspect. In the UK, orthodontists undergo a further three years training before they can go on the specialist register and this will enable them to look at bite, jaw function, alignment etc which should give you a stable result for years to come. Dentists can offer orthodontics but this can be after very little training. When researching my own treatment I contacted the GDC and the BOS to ask about this and found them both a useful source of information.

I have been in metal braces for just over a year now and can honestly say I haven't regretted it for a moment. My treatment has been slow and carefully thought out and if you read my posts, will see that I have had a really good experience.

Good luck.

[Aviol]

Hello from another 40 year old uk mum, I've just hopped over from my thread

I was also offered 6 month smiles at one of my consultations but I just didn't feel happy that it would give me stable results. Plus, when I got home and googled the guy, I realised that he had done Shaun Ryder's teeth which put me off a little, I want natural looking teeth!

Good luck making your decision, I think I'd be tempted to go with the traditional ortho too but it's a very personal decision. Keep us up to date with your progress.

[KMC]

NeilH - thank you, yours was one of the first stories I read on this forum and gave me the courage to think that metal brackets are "cool" - that is what I will be going for. I'm so glad it is all working out for you.

Aviol - thank you for hopping over, I will be following your story with interest. Made me laugh about Shaun Ryder - he's not exactly a poster boy for a Dentist!!

[BracesGuy]

I would recommend to go to an ortho and get the "whole works", as you put it. However, I would also recommend getting opinions from at least 2 other orthos. If you look around you should be able to find some more with free initial visits. Use those visits to question the approach they would plan regarding extractions etc and to determine who you feel most comfortable with and confident in.

[sirwired]

No matter what option you choose, with those prices at the "real" ortho, I don't see any reason to let a general dentist that's been through minimal ortho training do the work.

As the other posters have said, get the "full works"; your teeth, gums, and bite will thank you!

[DrJasonKTam]

This is a no-brainer who to go with.

Fastbraces and 6 Month Smiles are just trade names for straightening the front teeth. This is the same plan basically you are being offered as option 2 from the orthodontist. Generally, the "cosmetic-only" options are carried out by doctors who have taken a weekend certification course, but do not have much experience with tooth movement.

Especially with the cost (I'm still scratching my head that general dentists feel they can charge the same or more for their services with far less experience), the orthodontist all the way.

[KMC]

I don't know where I got it into my head that an Orthodontist would be a lot more expensive and therefore out of my price range. I very nearly didn't even go for a consultation - I was just going to go with a general dentist. That's why I wanted to share my story in case other people are researching their options.

Anyway, I have decided to go for extractions and braces on the top and bottom to hopefully get my teeth and bite the best I can.

I went for my X-rays, photos and impressions today - that was all very straightforward. I have my upper extraction booked for next Wednesday 11th June - I didn't realise my own dentist would have to do this (duh!). But it was easy enough to arrange, the Ortho gave me a letter to give to my dentist and I got it booked in - it's going to cost £127 (I might put it under my pillow and see if I can get something back from the Tooth Fairy!!).

And then I have a brace date for 24th June - I am soooooo excited!!

[parsleysage]

I went for my X-rays, photos and impressions today - that was all very straightforward. I have my upper extraction booked for next Wednesday 11th June - I didn't realise my own dentist would have to do this (duh!). But it was easy enough to arrange, the Ortho gave me a letter to give to my dentist and I got it booked in - it's going to cost £127 (I might put it under my pillow and see if I can get something back from the Tooth Fairy!!).

And then I have a brace date for 24th June - I am soooooo excited!!

LOL! You are tooooo funny!!!! I hope the tooth fairy brings you the exact amount needed

Congrats on choosing to go the full route of fixing all that needs to be fixed. I do not think you will regret it! The next three weeks before your brace date will fly by. I was just braced today so we will be buddies!

[Aviol]

Wow, that's amazing, I'm so happy for you! Are you having both top and bottom braces put on at the same time? Did you decide to go for metal or clear?

Hope you're extractions go well. Good luck with the tooth fairy, adult teeth should certainly be worth more than the going rate for milk teeth I reckon!

Not long to go now and we'll both be 40 year old British brace faced mums! Knowing that you're doing this too makes me feel slightly less insane

[Hash]

Hi there, I think you have made the right decision defiantly. Good luck with it all. I have had 4teeth removed, 2top, 2bottom and to be honest it was fine and I already have noticed movement on my top line so it will be so worth it good luck will everything