Metal Mouth Message Board

My ortho wants to shave some of my teeth down to combat the crowding and make space. I get braced on June 15th. Any thoughts or opinions on this? He said that this would be preferable to extracting bicuspids. I would appreciate your feedback.

I've had teeth shaved at two separate appointments and have been told to expect it again next time. It's painless and seems to be working well for me so far.

It's not a visible change in the tooth size, just a mm or two on either side. Seems a far more pleasant option than extractions.

Hi Jared, I was supposed to get shaving on both my top and bottom arches to make room to retract teeth (no real crowding, just overbite and slightly 'sticky-outy' bottom teeth). When the ortho installed my braces he decided there wasn't really enough room in the top arch to correct the overjet even with shaving, so he decided to extract 2 x upper second bicuspids. Still going with shaving on the bottom arch though. To be honest I'm a bit apprehensive about compromising the integrity of the teeth by reducing them but he's the expert, and it seems a better plan of action than ripping another two perfectly healthy teeth out!

Good luck with your treatment. If you're still @ intial consultation stage, I definitely recommend getting more than one consultation. I wish I had, my ortho's not overly communicative which I find frustrating.

Good luck!

Anticipator, how long does each shaving take?

My ortho wants to evaluate me for possible shaving. I know I'm not going to allow it. I've got sensitive teeth already, and everything I know tells me that it CANNOT be good for your teeth.

Jaswi - i totally agree. My dentist asked if i was going to get my teeth shaved down (horizontally) after treatment to creat a nice straight line.... HOW can this be of any benefit to your teeth - surely it is just stripping off enamel??

I think my answer will be a resounding NO!

I had this done this week at my appointment. It was easy and painless. My ortho called it shaving and used a strip that looked like silver paper. It felt like he was flossing with some fine grain sand paper. It wasn't painful at all. I had this done Wed. on a stubborn tooth that just wasn't lining up. We have been fighting with this tooth for 9 months so they shaved it and already it is looking better!
I have read on here many discussions about this and the exact amount of enamel it takes off vs. the actual amount you have on your teeth. I think that in the ask the doc section Dr J talks about this as well. I think it is pretty common, and I was told it is not dangerous to your teeth. ( any more than orthodontics is)
Look in search for slenderizing, shaving, IPR ( those are all names for it) you should be able to come up with plenty of info on it. There is even some great photos someone posted ( I cant remember who it is that had it done and it shows how quickly it helped her teeth move)

Good Luck!

Anticipator, how long does each shaving take?

Im not Anticipator but I can answer this. It took less than 5 minutes. It was a breeze.

KJM wrote:

Anticipator, how long does each shaving take?

Im not Anticipator but I can answer this. It took less than 5 minutes. It was a breeze.

I am Anticipator and yes, it took only a few minutes for me too. My ortho used a powered handpiece with a rotating circular sanding tool rather than the person above who had IPR with a sandpaper type tool.

My lower front teeth were shaved about 9 months in because of the crowding. It did not hurt at all (I have sensitive teeth too!). The worst part was the noise. My lowers straightened out really fast after that and when I got debanded this week, I ASKED my ortho to shave and even out the tops of my lowers for a more uniform look. He gladly obliged!

I had my front 2 teeth shaved when I first got braces put on a month ago. My teeth were very triangular, narrow at the top, and wide at the bottom, so he shaved the wider part to make the tooth look more rectangular and "normal". What a huge difference too! I love it! Didn't hurt at all, took less than 5 min, and also used an electic spinning tool that kinda was like a dremel tool.

KJM, Anticipator, Blondie111, KittyW: thanks for the replies all! Makes me feel a little better about the prospect of sandpapering my teeth to hear others have gone thru the same procedure with no adverse effects!

Cheers!