Metal Mouth Message Board

Are Damon braces just as good, or better, as the regular braces with the rubber bands? Price-wise are they more expensive? Thanks in advance.

I got 2 quotes, one for full-metal (regular braces) and one for Damon's.
Damons = $4700, 18months
Regular = $6000, 18-24months

I went with Damon's and have been pleased. The office doing the Damon's was also more professional, in my opinion, and I felt more secure getting my teeth done there.

I went to the ortho my dentist office recommended and then I went to a "popular one" in the phone book. I found out that each office was offering a different type of bracket, so I was fortunate. I was upset that the Damon's didn't let me have *colors*, but I didn't want to be in braces for 2 full years... in addition to the fact the doc who quoted me 2yrs said it may or maynot even help my TMJ, where as the first doc (the one the Damon's) said the TMJ was caused by my messed up bite and that he could get me out of my TMJ pain immeidately --- WHICH HE DID!!!

Damon's are standard at my doc's office, however they do offer ceramics and invislign.

Ask around and find out who you know has gone through braces in your area. That might help a lot.

Forget about brackets.... Find a good ortho. Also the wires move the teeth not the brackets

Since this is in the parents' section, I'm assuming that this question is being asked on behalf of a child? I'd go with traditional metal ones over Damons for a kid, firstly because it shouldn't make a difference time and results-wise, and also because kids tend to enjoy having coloured ligs.

My daughter is 14 with an overbite (upper jaw) and underbite (lower jaw) have seen two dentists, one wants to use conventional braces and remove 4 teeth, said treatment will be 26 mths and about 4100 - most of which will come out of my pocket. The next wants to use damon braces - 18 mths and about 6000 - I will have to cover about the entire cost of conventional braces, so I will be 4500 out of pocket, which option will really produce the better result?

The type of braces (Damon or otherwise) does not affect the final outcome. I would be interested, however, to ask the orthodontist if the extraction of four teeth will have any affect on her appearance (will it flatten her face). You may also want to get one more consultation. If you have two contrasting opinions, sometimes it can help to get a third one, and then you will have 2 vs. 1. (Unless you get a completely different opinion; that can happen too. But then you just keep searching until you are satisfied that you are making the right choice).

Damon braces or regular braces -- the outcome still comes down to the skill of the orthodontist.

Well I can say that the orthos that used SL did quote less time than the ones using traditional brackets. And the Damon doc was the shortest amount of time. Of course we will see now but we did the records mold etc and when we went to get the treatment prescribed she felt confident of the timeframe. So my daughter (14) has had the Damon clears on upper six and metal and loves them. A little pain because her canines are being pulled down. But her friends commented how different her braces look and love the clear since they are smaller than other ceramic brackets. Plus the metal have a very nice color and are quite small. So her friends that have are a bit jealous of hers. At first she wanted colors but now realizes how cool her braces look she told me I can't imagine putting something on them. So we have had a very positive experience so far and would recommend them. All the ortho we visted were professional but this one felt more like home.
Good luck.

Ok, so my daughter and I have been to three orthos, on me the first wants to pull a healthy tooth in front, crowding, second wants to pull front perm tooth, third wants to put on Damon braces. I like the results the third ortho talked about as to "changing my profile along with my teeth" that the other two didn't mention. Will trad. braces change profile any better or at all like Damon braces "will"? The cost between the two is a diff of about $1100. I'm 43 and my daughter is 17 and I'm on info overdrive and sooo confused....

I have the Damon self-ligating braces. They have done wonders for my arch development. Supposedly they apply forces on the teeth a bit differently. I know that typically fewer extractions are usually needed with the Damon braces.

Self-ligating braces are a lot easier during "adjustments". They just pop open the doors so there is no messing with ligs.

I don't know so much about the profile changes. I will say that I have developed more symmetry in my smile so far in my treatment.

I guess it really depends on your needs and your daughter's needs.

If you are looking at clear vs. metal in the Damons, know that the clear brackets are a bit larger. I have been really happy with them though.

I think it is great you and your daughter will be going through this journey together.

Thx Jill:) the more I talk to people the more I think I want to go with the Damon's. I'm still in the process to see cost wise to ortho. And yes, it's going to be to a challenge, but that is why we want to do it together so the other doesn't chicken out and have someone to compare it to. I'm very excited! It will be in the next few weeks and I will update periodically as to what and how.

First off, if you have two contrasting opinions from orthodontists you may want to find a third orthodontist and see what the consensus on the extractions seems to be. Extractions should be avoided if possible because they are painful and tend to impact facial structure.

Regarding self-litigating (i.e. Damon System) versus traditional brackets, the type of bracket generally has no effect on the results of the treatment. This makes a lot of sense, since the brackets themselves do not move the teeth, but rather are only there as a means of attaching the wire to the teeth. The wire is the structure which actually moves the teeth into place.

The Damon System has a brilliant marketing campaign, but you should speak with licensed orthodontists to find out how much of it is true and how much of it is advertising technique. Be aware that promotional material for the Damon System does not actually cite any studies or medical publications.

Here's a source I found that explains this more in-depth: http://tdrortho.com/deciphering-the-tru ... ng-braces/

Thanks for this I thought the Damon was a fantastic new product... its clearly marketing.

I had damons by default as my ortho only has Damon, incognito and Invisalign. I had the top 6 brackets clear.