The Purpose of Elastics! ugh!

[CanehdianGal]

Hi everyone,

I mentioned on an earlier post , that along with my front elastics my Ortho added 2 more with cleats on the insides of my back molar both sides attached to the front of the lowers. After 4 days 1 tooth that the elastic is attached to is sore..Chewing or any contact. Is this a good thing? Are my teeth moving..

I always thought elastics were put on nearing end of treatment not 5 months into it!

What is th purpose of elastics..Don't the braces do most of the work?

Having food getting stuck is a pain but now with the elastics on the sides now everything is getting wedged in..Thankgod for my cordless waterpick and interdental pickers. ( that's what I call them)

[platinum]

After 4 days 1 tooth that the elastic is attached to is sore..Chewing or any contact. Is this a good thing? Are my teeth moving..

I always thought elastics were put on nearing end of treatment not 5 months into it!

I dont remember that my teeth were so sore when I had elastics to correct my crossbite.
You got your elastics really early. Maybe your teeth were "ready" for them ie. not so much to align and level before them.

[red indian]

Well I have had elastics from day 1 of a year long treatment. The ortho said these were important to guide the movement of teeth in specific ways. So my guess is it isnt always true that elastics are used close to teh end of the treatment- though i am not sure what are the factors involved in such a decision.

[Meloho]

I always thought elastics were put on nearing end of treatment not 5 months into it!

It varies case to case; my elastics were put in the day I was braced. Your ortho knows what's best at the time...you obviously need them now and you may need them again near the end. Then again, you might not. It's hard to say, but you'll find out soon enough.

[CanehdianGal]

"can be used to address either Class II or Class III molar relationships"

What does it mean with the different Classes..I see that talked about often?

Thankyou all who replyed

[CanehdianGal]

Thankyou Karen!

So basically we all have to get to a class 1.

I'm going to ask my Ortho what class I'm at now.

[CanehdianGal]

Ugh Jaw Surgery I did not see to see that..Gulp.

I didn't see a photo of what class I am..I have an open bite so none of my teeth touched when I would bite down. Only 1 tooth my back molar. Now since jan I have 3 more touching in the back right side. and 1 on the left side in back. Because of those frggen elastics in the front, my teeth have now overlapped. So ya it's doing it's job even though i hate having them in the front. He says I am not ready just yet to have them off. I said but loooooooooook there knocking the bracket..lol I was told he's such a perfectionist..I can see now he is..lol
The space is closing on the sides when I bite down so I def see a difference.

[kirjax]

thanks for those links as well. I never really asked what my bite is and it's not circled on the copy of the record sheet they give you. I think I'm a class III only bc of the way the back molars are lined up in my mouth. I wonder if it will take the entire 20-24 months to fix that! I acutally don't mind the elastics but I can't imagine wearing them throughout the treatment phase.

[valster]

I just got elastics a week ago and I'm not bothered by them at all.

I was told to remove them to eat and brush/floss and that's it. My ortho told me they need 10 hours of steady pressure to do their job, so if I take them out to brush/eat I should put them back as quickly as possible.