THINNING of face during braces

[drrick]

If you have a bimaxillary protrusion then treatment of choice is 4 bi ext.
Your face will look better afterwards, better lip competency, less protrusion, etc.

[juppiejux]

Thanks for the kind reply drrick. Forgot to mention that I'm a Class I. Does it make a difference?

[SandyDolly]

Hi all!

I'm new here.
Would jus like to know, how much changes to the face structure during the braces period?

I've got four extractions. (Jus got 2. Getting another 2 this coming wed)
All 1st premolar teeth. Both top n bottom.

Will extractions affect my face structure?
Cos I'm kinda freaked out, as this is my first time putting on braces.

And I'm in my late teens, 18.

[VA5]

Sandydolly,
If you read the posts in this thread, you'll see that everybody's experience is different. Some people say it didin't make an ounce of difference, even with extractions. Some people are distraught b/c of the changes, and some people are elated. It all just depends to be honest. I definitely have facial changes and I'm thinking part of it is b/c of extractions. Because they ortho has to pull your teeth together, what happens or seems to happen is that the entire arch gets a little smaller too.. so if you have a thin face, it'll make it look thinner and maybe even longer. Some people have round faces and welcome the change.

[SandyDolly]

Tx so much for the quick reply.

[lu lu]

after reading this thread would you agree that it's probs having braces that causes peoples faces to change & maybe appear sunken?

it seems people assume it's from having teeth extracted & think it's due to this but from reading this thread i don't think that's the case?

[GeenBug]

The shrunken look's usually the result of extractions. It also depends on how many teeth gets pulled out, i would say. Braces without extractions also shrink the face or maybe i should say they pull the face backwards a little...recede gradually...as the treatment progresses. I've seen youtube videos of people who've had braces without extractions and this's what i've noticed. But the change isn't as drastic as the change you would get with extractions and it's also for the better...in terms that their face looks much better than they did at the end of the treatment compared to the beginning. At least this's what i've noticed with the videos i've seen.

[Dilema]

lol

I got my first comment yesterday, after 6 weeks a friend of mine I havent seen in months said, "Hey ou lost weight, your face is thinner"

[jodasjo]

hmmm... i have a round face and the thinning of the face should be welcomed...

My concern is that my face will go sagging after the taking off the brace, and the 2 lines extending from the 2 sides of the nose will look longer (i don't know the name of the "smiling wrinkles" round the mouth from the nose...). I am now 26 and don't really want to look older with such face...

So, i am thinking if exercising and toning the face muscles could help this "expected" outcome...I will be putting on my brace in Jan 2011 and the won't be having any extractions (lucky that i can keep my teeth).

sorry that i am not providing any new info to this thread of posts, just hope i could ease my concern a bit... i guess many of you have removed your braces since commenting on this post, would like to know if you are doing any "maintenance" on face for the post-brace life ?

[QT]

I also got comments of how I looked thinner around the face. I used to have a more squarish jawline which made alot of people even strangers say I looked like Sophie Ellis Bextor which I didn't mind as she is stunning hehe. Now I have more prominent cheekbones which I love and my squarish jaw has now become more softer. Its weird since I've had braces on I have received more male attention! Could it be because of the facial changes???

[gtrguy2886]

I'm about to go through braces for a 2nd time. This time I won't be getting teeth pulled, to my knowledge anyway.

But the first time I had two maxillary first premolars removed. I didn't see facial changes, except I now have a fairly narrow facial structure. But the anterior open bite I've developed AFTER braces is, in my opinion, the reason for the narrower, longer look in the face. My teeth on the sides have essentially over-erupted. So I don't think it was the extractions, but I guess it could have been... My sister also had the same treatment and her face is pretty much the same. But we both only had TWO premolars removed, not four as is often the case with braces.

I think the more teeth you remove, the more change(s) you might expect in facial structure? From what I understand, extractions are becoming a last resort because of these concerns.

[fosterp]

Don't mean to resurrect an old thread but it seems to be a good place to put this...

Recently saw some old friends who hadn't seen me in about 7 months and their words were "are you ok how you come lost so much weight?" Now they have seen me before with braces on because I have had them a year and a half now so its not new...however what was new was I got bite turbos about 6 months ago and it has opened my bite a considerable amount. That combined with the effect of hardware in your mouth, and a micro screw implant on one side...I think it has somewhat changed my face to make it appear considerably thinner. Their comments lead me to believe the source of their opinion comes mainly from changes in facial appearance, and from the way they said it (and the fact I think I have a longer face to begin with), it doesn't seem to be a good change. I have not had extractions. So hopefully when I get this hardware out...it will reverse whatever changes there may have been.

It makes me second guess whether the orthodontist is doing the appropriate thing by extruding my posterior teeth to correct my deep bite seeing as how I already have a vertical pattern already....

[magoogs]

I'm glad I checked in here as I've had the exact same thing. My brother says I make faces I never made before and I think my face lost a LOT of weight. I frequently get comments like "WHOA, lots of weightloss buddy!" I had been thinking it was because my diet changed (can't eat chips with these on) and my increase in exercise, but maybe the braces have a big part of it. I've also had dark circles under my eyes recently and that's bothered me even more and I was hoping that would also pop up on here. But at least I now understand the drastic face-weight loss (or change).

[belistic10]

this is a nerve-wracking topic for me since i am to get the braces on in 12 days. lol Already had 4 extractions so theres no going back there. I voiced my concerns about face change etc prior to that, but they have assured me this Orthodontist is one of the best for determining facial structure and how to get a great result at the end, and in fact a better facial appearance! So i figure all i can do is put blind trust that he knows what he is doing (still scary though!) I think in my case since i have a small, narrowish mouth and an overbite, plus crowding at the bottom, that this should actually all widen my smile and make me look better i hope The main reason for the extractions were at the bottom they need more room to shift my crowded teeth straight, and what they do at the bottom they must do at the top they said. This ortho is one of the best in the state (south australia) and teaches other orthos as well, so fingers crossed it improves my looks not worsens them!
I will write back here later if i have any changes..

[kennyandrew85]

What we all need to remember, like all things in life, people who are happy with something generally don't jump on a message board to tell everyone, they just enjoy their life. Whereas the people who have had a bad experience will be on here in a flash to warn everyone.

So it's a very small minority who have complaints of sunken in faces.

I would also recommend people DON'T search youtube for videos, it only makes things worse as combined with a few genuine upset people you also have marketing videos by companies (DAMON) who say their brand of braces can always do the job without extractions. (I did a lot of research on this).

If you search for brace extractions.. You'll notice there is a video of a woman lying on her back making herself look like her face is messed up and struggling to breathe, you'll also notice a few documentaries on twins who had different types of braces and one ended up with a weird face. It's all marketing. (I should know this is what I do for a living, although not using scare tactics).

Social Media (Facebook, twitter, youtube etc) is the new market place.

If you can scare people getting braces into moving to your brand to avoid extractions then you make more money.
Manufacturers want orthodontists to be using their kit. If all their patients keep requesting it, then the orthodontist is either going to get hold of it, or lose out on potential patients.