First follow up appointment with headgear
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downhillsnowskier
- Posts: 51
- Joined: Tue Feb 14, 2006 6:22 pm
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travdude5001
- Posts: 35
- Joined: Tue Oct 24, 2006 10:53 am
Hey again everyone. Some of the comments made me decide to call my ortho and ask more questions and get more information. He finally called me back today (he had been away at some kind of conference or something).
My ortho said that my molars have to move back around 10-12 millimeters. He said that ideally they would move back about 1 millimeter for every month that I wear my headgear all the time but my teeth haven't exactly been moving ideally so he thinks it will take closer to 18 months to move my molars back. Also he said that once my molars are back where they should be, they still have to be held in place there for a while until they settle into position, otherwise they will just shift around. He said that in order to keep my teeth from shifting, I will have to wear my headgear for about 6 more months after my molars are back to the right spots.
I also asked my ortho if I was going to have to wear it 24/7 for that whole time and he said probably. He said that having the pull from the headgear on my teeth all the time like that is the only way for my headgear to move my stubborn teeth well and then my teeth need the constant hold from the headgear while they are settling down otherwise I would have to wear it even longer. My ortho said that when the teeth are settling down, they start to shift when the headgear isn't holding them and then when it's put on they have to adjust back and start settling down again, so wearing it at night would mean my teeth take a whole lot longer to settle in.
The good news he gave me is that in 6-9 months I won't have to wear the strap over the top of my head anymore. After that I'm only going to have to wear the one behind my neck. Also he asked me if I was wearing it when I eat and when I told him yes, he said that's really good because that will help a lot with getting closer to moving my molars 1 millimeter per month. I hope so because the only time I really take it off now is showering, rinsing out after I eat and to brush my teeth. The sooner I am done with it the better, but looks like it's still going to be a couple years.
-Trav
My ortho said that my molars have to move back around 10-12 millimeters. He said that ideally they would move back about 1 millimeter for every month that I wear my headgear all the time but my teeth haven't exactly been moving ideally so he thinks it will take closer to 18 months to move my molars back. Also he said that once my molars are back where they should be, they still have to be held in place there for a while until they settle into position, otherwise they will just shift around. He said that in order to keep my teeth from shifting, I will have to wear my headgear for about 6 more months after my molars are back to the right spots.
I also asked my ortho if I was going to have to wear it 24/7 for that whole time and he said probably. He said that having the pull from the headgear on my teeth all the time like that is the only way for my headgear to move my stubborn teeth well and then my teeth need the constant hold from the headgear while they are settling down otherwise I would have to wear it even longer. My ortho said that when the teeth are settling down, they start to shift when the headgear isn't holding them and then when it's put on they have to adjust back and start settling down again, so wearing it at night would mean my teeth take a whole lot longer to settle in.
The good news he gave me is that in 6-9 months I won't have to wear the strap over the top of my head anymore. After that I'm only going to have to wear the one behind my neck. Also he asked me if I was wearing it when I eat and when I told him yes, he said that's really good because that will help a lot with getting closer to moving my molars 1 millimeter per month. I hope so because the only time I really take it off now is showering, rinsing out after I eat and to brush my teeth. The sooner I am done with it the better, but looks like it's still going to be a couple years.
-Trav
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HeadgearJoe
- Posts: 574
- Joined: Wed Sep 08, 2004 12:36 pm
- Location: NASHVILLE TENN
- Contact:
hi trav , like i told you buddy , it will be worth it in the end , just hang in there , i to also got stuck with new appliances this past monday , CLEATS inside on my molors , there cutting the crap out of my tongue, there inside so the elastics on these go from inside my mouth to the outside of the upper molors tipping them upright, i'm going back thursday to get the changed out to buttons , hopefully less pain , take care bud , hgjoe
braces off 1/31/08 wearing bonded retainers with a nightsplint, will get removable hawleys 2/21/08
Hi Trav,
You are one hell of a brave guy wearing your headgear 24/7, I think it takes a lot of guts. I'm sorry that it's going to be longer than you anticipated, but you sound as though you are competely at ease with it now, so I'm sure it won't seem so long in the end!
The "1mm per month" thing is right, my ortho told me this in my treatment, I'm having some teeth pulled forward. Then there is the "settling time" on top of that which has to be taken into account.
I have to admit I've been tracking your progress at adjusting to a headgear as my ortho is using mini-screws to move my teeth forward, but like you the fall back plan is some nasty external contraption (a face mask I think he mentioned). The way you've handled it makes me feel much more at ease.
Hope everything goes well for you and get much more positive news at the next ortho visit.
You are one hell of a brave guy wearing your headgear 24/7, I think it takes a lot of guts. I'm sorry that it's going to be longer than you anticipated, but you sound as though you are competely at ease with it now, so I'm sure it won't seem so long in the end!
The "1mm per month" thing is right, my ortho told me this in my treatment, I'm having some teeth pulled forward. Then there is the "settling time" on top of that which has to be taken into account.
I have to admit I've been tracking your progress at adjusting to a headgear as my ortho is using mini-screws to move my teeth forward, but like you the fall back plan is some nasty external contraption (a face mask I think he mentioned). The way you've handled it makes me feel much more at ease.
Hope everything goes well for you and get much more positive news at the next ortho visit.