Need Advice - Ortho recommends expander for 7 year old

[annointed3]

Hi all,

My daughter turned 7 in Jan. 09 and she has a severe overbite as a result of "7 years of finger sucking". We have finally broken the habit of finger sucking and are now looking at the options of ortho treatment.

The ortho recommends a (1 year) Phase 1 treament consisting of a expander on top, and another removal type of appliance on the bottom (can't remember the name). The appliances would stay end for 4/6 months. After the expander is removed, a space retainer will be installed and braces on "6 of her front teeth"). Some of those teeth are baby teeth. I have never heard of braces being installed on baby teeth. The ortho says success would be if we could reduce her overbite by 50%.

I am concerned about the discomfort she will experience from the expander (turning, eating food, speech???)

Are there any other parents who can provide me advice on this? Part of me wants to wait until she is older, but my daughter says "let''s just get it over with

I have spoken to my ortho will about all of the concerns noted above. He says that I can just wait if I am uncomfortable.

Thanks in advance

[sauerkraut]

7 does sound very young to be starting all this but I don't think it's particularly unusual when expanders are needed. It's certainly preferable to leaving it so long that the palate fuses. My daughter wasn't much older than yours when she had her fixed expander and headgear. And if your daughter is willing to go ahead with it now, then I'd seize the day before she changes her mind

The expander is uncomfortable at first and it does cause a few issues with speaking and eating, but it's amazing how adaptable kids are and how they manage to get used to it. My daughter came through it unscathed -- I've posted about it a couple of times in this section.

When it was too late we did see some stuff on the net about what a barbaric procedure it all is but I wouldn't say my daughter was remotely traumatised, and she loved giving me tips when I had my own expander fitted .

I don't know anything about braces being fitted on baby teeth, I'm afraid.

[annointed3]

thank you very much for your advice

[badbite]

My daughter is eight and we have been waiting for her baby teeth to come out so we can get her expander and treatment started. Not all of her front teeth are in, however her bite is becoming more and more tramatic, so the ortho wants to start now.

When your daughter gets the expander she will develop a space between her front teeth. My guess is that he would want to brace them so they will align properly. That way when the permannt teeth come in they will hopefully come in straight.

[Gomagsgo]

My daughter has had an expander that widens her upper mouth, and pushes her front teeth forward due to a crossbite. She is 7 going on 8, tomorrow we get braces on her front four teeth top and bottom. If she had not gotten the appliance now, she most likely would have developed a worse crossbite and had jaw alignment problems. She complains a little about the appliance (usually right before she asks for a cookie or other treat), but not because it hurts or anything, she doesn't even use the wax they gave her. The only thing I would advise is not to pin yourself down by telling your child what EXACTLY to expect because the plan could change during the process. I told my daughter that she would only be getting four braces on top but we were just told that she needs four on the top and bottom with bands because they do not want her bite to open up. Now I have to retract what I told her, not a good situation since I want her to trust me through this process.

[badbite]

Just wanted to update tha my older daughter still has her expander along with upper braces, and my younger daughter got her expander while she was still six (due to severe crowding, cross bite and underbite). They are both doing very well and really have no issues. My sixe year old's speech has actually improved since she has had her expander. They both wear reverse-pull head gear at night.

[ItsFreyja]

I know this is old, but wanted to chime in and say that I (now in my mid-30s) had expanders shortly after my 7th birthday, and then 18 months of braces (brackets on middle 4 teeth, top and bottom) until just after my 9th birthday. I had a narrowed arch due to thumbsucking and although I'm about to be rebraced as an adult, having my palate expanded while I was young and compliant surely saved me a lot of agony and self-consciousness as a teenager.

[bbsadmin]

My daughter had an expander to fix her cross bite when she was 8 years old. She only needed it for about 6 to 8 months. Now she is 18 years old and it looks like she will not need braces or any orthodontic work at all (lucky girl!). The expander at age 8 fixed what needed fixing, and it was worth it!