Metal Mouth Message Board

On Monday I was at the ortho. to have my wire and wire ties removed so that I could go get my teeth cleaned. On Tuesday I noticed some soreness in one of my teeth and can only assume it's because my teeth are moving because the wire isn't there. My adjustment appt. was to be yesterday, so that they could reinsert the wire and do whatever else they had planned. I was on my way to the appt. and they called to cancel, because my ortho. had to go out of town. I think they certainly should have called earlier than 10 minutes before my appt. The soonest I can get in to have the wire reinserted is Monday. Great! That's a whole week without a wire. I hope my teeth haven't moved back too much by then. I'm disappointed because this throws off my progress by a week. I was told when my braces went on that I'd only have them between 3 and 6 months. Well, I'm 3 1/2 months into it and because one of my teeth is still tilted, I'm guessing that it will be longer than 6 months. I don't really care how long it takes, as I've gotten used to the braces and will probably even miss them when they're gone. It's just disappointing to have come this far and then have a week where my teeth are left to go wild and do whatever they please.

I'm sorry to hear about your setback. Hope everything gets back in order soon.

I feel naked without the wire and my colored ligs. Well, I guess I'll have a few more days to decide what colors I want next. I just had bright pink and yellow. Have to say I didn't like the yellow.

How come you have the wire and ties removed for cleaning?

I even go in with power chains and the hygienist does an excellent job!

Chris - getting the wire removed makes it easier for the dentist to clean. I'm sure they do a great job either way, but I figure it just helps them get all the nooks and crannies.

My ortho recommended it, as did my dentist.

So my adjustment next week will take up most of my day... in the morning I get the only place the ortho could squeeze me in to remove the wire. Then I go back to work for a couple hours, sans archwire, and then leave early to go to the dentist for a cleaning and then the ortho for the regular adjustment.

With my poor dental hygiene before braces I figure any help I can get along the way to keep my teeth looking spiffy the better!

I had my first cleaning with braces (and a powerchain) a few weeks ago and my hygienist had no problem cleaning my teeth. My orthodontist had mentioned that they could remove the wire and powerchain prior to the cleaning if I wanted that but that hygienists are used to cleaning around braces and so it really wasn't necessary.

If I had decided to do that, I would have had to come to the ortho's office to have the stuff removed; go to the dentist to get my teeth cleaned; and then come back to the ortho to have the wire and powerchain replaced -- all within a few HOURS.

It is astonishing how quickly teeth will move back once you remove the appliances. Last week my ortho had to prep my teeth for a couple of extractions (removing the regular archwire and two brackets, and just placing a smaller wire around my six front teeth). Within 24 hours I already noticed some teeth flaring out to their original (ugly) positions. Although it wasn't really surprising, it was still unsettling.

You can be sure I'll be wearing my retainers religiously once my braces come off!

Hi! I think you should make sure that won't happen again
Good luck!
Joanna