IMPACTED CANINES CLUB

[oregonhusker]

Update for me. My canine is in place. Now we're doing some detailing with the other teeth, and I think I'll be done with braces within the next month. Very excited about that. Not too excited about retainers though.

All in all, going through the process hasn't been too bad. It's only been 18 months and counting, and I know some others will have put much more time in that I have. I hope all works out well for you folks. Have faith. It has worked out well for me and I'm very excited about having straight teeth and a canine tooth that should have been in its current position 30 years ago.

[Gabriela1987]

Hi everyone,

I'm 27 years old, and I had my exposure surgery yesterday. It seems to be a bit of a different approach as I don't have braces yet and I don't know if it has something to do with the fact that my canine is impacted labially. I can already see my canine but it is quite high up and I am healing from the surgery. I'm a bit worried, because it is impacted diagonally and the tip is touching the root of the lateral incisor. It also didn't help that when asked about the probabilities of the tooth coming down, the surgeon commented that the canine tooth is seated higher than he had expected and that we can always try but if it's not possible, we can always look into the option of getting an implant. :( The impacted canine is also quite pointy on the dental x-ray in comparison to others that I've seen. I'm meeting with the orthodontist on Monday for him to check the exposure site.

I've been really self-conscious about my baby tooth lately, so I hope this can be resolved. I also don't want this process to turn into a money pit and it would be great to have my natural canine tooth in the dental arch.

[SandSnake]

Congrats oregon! You are incredibly lucky to have gone through this process so quickly. Soon you'll be able to smile and look great.


As for me, my canine has finally been straightened completely and moved forward between my two teeth.

We're officially ready to start pulling it down into place. However my orthodontist recommended I get the gum around it lasered off first to expose more of the tooth. That will make it come down faster. Has anyone done this? Anything you can tell me about it?

I'm just glad things are moving along. i'm still on schedule to get my braces off around my 2 year mark so i'm optimistic.

[akaufman3638]

Hi Everyone. I am looking for someone, anyone, with a similar situation to mine, but that IS seeing progress. I am 34 years old. I've had impacted canines since I was a pre-teen, but always foolishly refused the ortho care to get them fixed. I've had prosthetic teeth on a flipper/retainer this whole time. I've finally gained the confidence to just do the braces and exposure.

So, here's my condition. Both my right and left canines are labially impacted. They are both in perfect position, and the ortho's only guesses as to why they haven't come in on their own is #1 there wasn't enough room between the teeth on either side, or #2 (dreadful scenario) they are ankylosed (or fused) to the bone. I had braces placed in January 2015 with prosthetics places on the arch wire to fill in the missing canine spaces. I had my exposure surgery in April 2015. In May 2015, the ortho "engaged" the gold chains with the stretch thread. They keep trying to schedule me every 4-5 weeks to have the thread/bands replaced and tightened, but I always call every 2-3 weeks and tell them they're loose so I can get new tension put on them sooner. Truth is, I see no progress. I had new Xrays done today, and it looked like MAYBE (if you squint really hard) one of my canines may have slightly moved. I don't care how long it takes, so long as I KNOW for sure that they are moving. I am terrified at the prospect of them being declared ankylosed and needing to be extracted and replaced with implants.

I also feel as though I should be feeling some sort of pain or discomfort if they are indeed moving. I feel nothing more than the pressure when they initially place the stretch thread. Can anyone tell me that you've had a similar case and its worked???? My ortho said that he's only had 4 canine exposure failures in 30 years and more than 150 patients...all have been women, between 30 and 40 years old, with well-positioned, labially-impacted canines. Not great odds.

[Siobhan]

Hi Everyone. I am looking for someone, anyone, with a similar situation to mine, but that IS seeing progress. I am 34 years old. I've had impacted canines since I was a pre-teen, but always foolishly refused the ortho care to get them fixed. I've had prosthetic teeth on a flipper/retainer this whole time. I've finally gained the confidence to just do the braces and exposure.

So, here's my condition. Both my right and left canines are labially impacted. They are both in perfect position, and the ortho's only guesses as to why they haven't come in on their own is #1 there wasn't enough room between the teeth on either side, or #2 (dreadful scenario) they are ankylosed (or fused) to the bone. I had braces placed in January 2015 with prosthetics places on the arch wire to fill in the missing canine spaces. I had my exposure surgery in April 2015. In May 2015, the ortho "engaged" the gold chains with the stretch thread. They keep trying to schedule me every 4-5 weeks to have the thread/bands replaced and tightened, but I always call every 2-3 weeks and tell them they're loose so I can get new tension put on them sooner. Truth is, I see no progress. I had new Xrays done today, and it looked like MAYBE (if you squint really hard) one of my canines may have slightly moved. I don't care how long it takes, so long as I KNOW for sure that they are moving. I am terrified at the prospect of them being declared ankylosed and needing to be extracted and replaced with implants.

I also feel as though I should be feeling some sort of pain or discomfort if they are indeed moving. I feel nothing more than the pressure when they initially place the stretch thread. Can anyone tell me that you've had a similar case and its worked???? My ortho said that he's only had 4 canine exposure failures in 30 years and more than 150 patients...all have been women, between 30 and 40 years old, with well-positioned, labially-impacted canines. Not great odds.

I am a 44 yo old with a previously labially-impacted canine which is now fully in place after approximately a year. My tooth was in a good position and I had exposure surgery May 2014. The canine was activated June 2014. I didn't see much movement for the first couple of months, however, in Sept 2014, enough of the canine was showing and my Ortho was able to put a button on the canine. The tooth moved fairly quickly after that and bracket was placed on the tooth in Oct 2014. The tooth was still high in the gum and it took a while for it completely to move down into place, once the bracket was on. I hope that helps. Unfortunately, it takes a little while and I'd be surprised if you saw movement already. Good luck!

[aml423]

Hi everyone!
Today at the ortho i was able to get a bracket placed on my canine tooth! Its still hidden back there and has a metal bracket instead of ceramic but needless to say I am very excited! I feel like I am finally making progress on my smile I can't wait to see what this stubborn tooth looks like! However I feel as if I am experiencing some sensitivity around my newly bracketed canine when drinking cold drinks etc. I was wondering if anyone else experienced this or if it might just be in my head! I also had what they called "build ups" applied to the bottom of my top molars. Apparently some type of thick glue to get my bite in the right place for the new canine. The assistant told me eating with the build ups will take some serious getting used too and they will be on until my next six week appointment. Any one had a similar experience and have any advice? Also congrats to everyone else who is making great progress!!

[akaufman3638]

Siobhan, Thank you for your story. It is very helpful to know that this has worked for someone of my age and gender. Appreciate you taking the time to reply.

[kimmyann]

Ok... I have had top braces on for exactly 2months today. There is already some considereable room that has been made around my baby canine. My baby canine is now a little loose. I am scheduled for the impacted canine exposure surgery and baby canine removal in another couple of months. My question is... Is it normal for the baby canine to become loose when space is being made and movement of teeth in mouth??? In my mind i think could it be where space is becoming available the impacted canine is moving down on its own???? But that could be wishful thinking on my part i guess. Please reply with your answers and experiences???

[kimmyann]

Also, i would like to know what you think about the surgery. Should I do the laughing gas and numbing or iv sedation???

[foreverbraced]

Hello, I am one of the not-so-successful stories of impacted canines. Mine has decided to grow sideways into the opposite direction it was supposed to grow into and it's just too far gone to do anything about it, so now I'm in the process of having my premolar take the canine's place. I'll try to post the results once I'm done with treatment (although that may take about a year) if anyone is interested.

[SandSnake]

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So after about 19 months...here it is! I had surgery done to laser off some of the gum around the tooth, which allowed my ortho to move the bracket from the bottom of the tooth to the middle. I lost almost a month waiting for the area to heal but now we're pulling this bad boy down. I'm swimming in optimism and hoping it will come down to place in a few months.

My biggest worry right now is what happens after. My front teeth have moved forward quite a bit giving me an awful overbite. I'm scared it will take a long time to fix that. I only have braces on top so it seems like rubber bands won't be an option unless I get the bottom as well. I have no idea what's going to happen. My ortho was in a hurry and didn't explain in detail, which upset me

[Siobhan]

FullSizeRender.jpg

So after about 19 months...here it is! I had surgery done to laser off some of the gum around the tooth, which allowed my ortho to move the bracket from the bottom of the tooth to the middle. I lost almost a month waiting for the area to heal but now we're pulling this bad boy down. I'm swimming in optimism and hoping it will come down to place in a few months.

My biggest worry right now is what happens after. My front teeth have moved forward quite a bit giving me an awful overbite. I'm scared it will take a long time to fix that. I only have braces on top so it seems like rubber bands won't be an option unless I get the bottom as well. I have no idea what's going to happen. My ortho was in a hurry and didn't explain in detail, which upset me

Hi SandSnake, congratulations on the movement. The same thing happened to my front teeth when my Ortho was pulling down my canine. My teeth flared out and were pulled upwards. Everything was pulled back together with power chains and I haven't needed elastics. Hope that helps and good luck!

[SandSnake]

Siobhan, I am super relieved to hear that. What were the power chains like, pain wise? How long did it take for everything to move back to where it was?

[Siobhan]

Siobhan, I am super relieved to hear that. What were the power chains like, pain wise? How long did it take for everything to move back to where it was?

Powerchains make your teeth a little sore for a couple of days but really not bad. You know they're doing their magic so it's tolerable. My teeth were pretty messy once the canine came down, lots of gaps, etc. it probably took 3-4 months but there was quick progress.

My Ortho is now pulling the canine down a little again but I'm mostly done. Hoping to get braces off next month.

Good luck!

[SandSnake]

Thank you Siobhan. Hopefully you'll let us see your pretty smile when you're done, those of us still in this process need all the encouragement we can get.