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Question about Wilckodontics

Posted: Sat Dec 23, 2006 10:32 pm
by Tsunami
This procedure is supposed to straighten teeth in an exceptional amount of time, three to four times faster than regular braces supposedly. My question: is it a safe procedure? I have read that moving teeth ridiculously fast can damage the roots of the teeth to the point of even tooth loss, so I was just wondering if this procedure may cause such problems to a patient's teeth.

Posted: Mon Dec 25, 2006 10:48 pm
by Gennel
I've read a couple of patient stories and I decided that it was not for me.
There is some surgery around each tooth they seem to shave a bit of bone so the tooth is loose & can be moved faster and each tooth will get stitches around the gumline for the entire mouth. To me it seemed that you go through 2-2.5 yrs of pain in about 6-8 short months total. I googled it and found a bunch of sites that explain this in detail. After I read those I then searched for patient stories...


Gennel

Posted: Mon Dec 25, 2006 10:49 pm
by Gennel
ooops ,hit submit twice

Posted: Mon Dec 25, 2006 11:34 pm
by mayday
I considered Wilckodontics after my intial dentist/ortho told me it might take upwards to four years to finish.

I am from Erie, where the Wilcko brothers work. The surgery itself didn't bother me, but the cost was ridiculous--simply out of my range. I don't have insurance to cover any of my treatment, but the cost for me was about $9000. Again, if it weren't for the cost, I probably would have agreed.

There is surgery involved, and from what I've read, the recovery time is similar to having your wisdom teeth removed; maybe a bit longer. The orthodontics part is practically the same. They use the same braces, etc. What's different is the periodontic part--that's what deals with the surgery (plus other things I'm unaware of) of the gums.

Most cases can be completed in 6-8 months, some even 3-8, but again, it all depends on what's going on. Because I have an impacted tooth, they estimated my duration at 10-12. This was appealing to me, because at the time, I did not want to go conventional, and even 12 months was better than 30.

Before I had the consultation with them, I did the same thing you did--I just googled them and also went to their site. Once you have a consultation with an orthodontist who can perform this, they will be able to tell you if you are a candidate. Dr. 'Perio' Wilcko said it would have been a good thing for me to do because of my roots--I guess it would have helped.

Even though I did not choose AOO with them, I am still going conventional with Dr. Wilcko.

Whereabouts are you from? JW.

Posted: Mon Dec 25, 2006 11:39 pm
by mayday
Gahh no edit!

Another minor thing, but I remember them telling me that you have to be able to commit to having adjustments like every two weeks. I think you might have the same number of adjustments as conventional, but they are just in a closer timeframe.

Because the teeth are moving much faster, they have to see you more frequently.

There is a lot to consider with either treatment. I hope you're able to find more information about it.

Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2006 12:07 am
by mayday
Jw, have you looked more into this? IMO, it seems like a fairly good/reliable procedure. Then again, I don't have much problem with surgery or needles. I just wish cost wasn't an issue.

As much as I would have liked AOO, I realized two+ years is nothing on thr rest of my life! :)

I hope you find what works best for you!

Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2006 10:57 pm
by ucldbmine
Is it just me?? I went to the site for the procedure and seems to me that all the bites are still messed up. Most of them looked like they still had an over bite the top teeth were angled forward a lot and the back teeth didn't seem to line up anymore. Don't know about the rest of you but the most important component to braces isn't straight teeth but the bite! I can't imagine spending 10k and still have bite issues.

Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2007 12:54 pm
by jake
I have had the procedure. I think its worth it. It was intially very painful and I took a week off work. I had a bad bite issue that I needed corrected. With this procdure, my bite issue was largely corrected in less than 2 months. So i disagree with the post that says that the procedure does not correct bite issues. I chose the procedure specifidally because it would correct my bite issue. My whole life I had been hearing that I needed major jaw surgery to correct my bite issues. Turns out, those doctors were wrong and this procedure worked just fine.

Wilkodontics is not for people who can not take pain though. It was very rough the first few days and week. Surgery is performed both inside and outside your mouth around every tooth. Each tooth is stitched near the gumline inside and out for two weeks. During that time you can not brush or really eat anything remotely solid. I recovered pretty quickly after that though.

It is expensive too. It cost me around 9,000. If you can afford it and are willing to go through the pain, the benefits are big.

Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2007 10:09 pm
by sgguy
I'm curious about Wilkodontics...

I read it can't apply to patients with Underbite cases (i.e Class III ) like myself?