why not ceramic on bottom too?

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#1 Post by **bstars** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 6:43 pm

Hi everyone,

As I see so many of you have ceramic on top & metal on bottom. I have ceramics on top, but nothing on bottom teeth yet. How did you guys decided to go for metal on bottom, and why? do they work better or faster? I was thinking of going with ceramic on bottom too, but not sure if its the right decision.

Thanks in advance.
Sometimes i think what would i do without this forum?

#2 Post by **browneyedgrl** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 7:09 pm

As far as I go, I didn't have a choice. My ortho doesn't offer ceramics on the bottom due to the risk of chipping the upper teeth.

Some people may not do ceramics on the lowers if offered because of cost as well.

B

#3 Post by **DrJasonKTam** » Thu Apr 30, 2009 9:00 pm

Ceramics tend to abrade the enamel of the teeth. This is especially problems in having a deep bite, where the bottom brackets may wear down the upper teeth excessively. In patients with no deep bite, ceramics may be used on the upper and lower arches.

Modern ceramic brackets do not have a difference in terms of rate of tooth movement in comparison to metal ones. It is common for ceramics to have an upcharge due to the extra cost of these brackets. However, the difference in price of upper and lower ceramics vs upper ceramic and lower metal is not significant enough for this to be a driving factor.

#4 Post by **rolo** » Fri May 01, 2009 6:47 am

Dr Jason

Would it be possible to use something like molar build-ups or something else to stop the top teeth hitting the bottom brackets, if a patient had a deep bite and really wanted ceramics on the bottom? Are there any other possible ways round this or does a deep bite prevent use of ceramic brackets on the bottom teeth?

#5 Post by **PRIMAITALIANA** » Fri May 01, 2009 7:40 am

I have ceramics on top & bottom but I dont have a deep bite, i have a closed bite. My ortho didnt tell me there was any risk or that treatment would take longer in having ceramics on the bottom too. I guess its your choice. I got ceramics b/c I want it to be less noticeable that im wearing braces, good luck

#6 Post by **dml** » Fri May 01, 2009 9:46 am

I had ceramics top & bottom, they are less noticeable, but cost a bit more

#7 Post by **Aviv16** » Fri May 01, 2009 10:51 am

I've got ceramics top and bottom. Before getting braces I spoke to two friends who'd had braces while in their mid-20s (I'm 29).

One had ceramic on top but metal on bottom and she said if she did it again, she'd get ceramic on both arches as it's not as noticeable in photos.

My other friend started off with ceramics but then ate beetroot and they turned pink! She was so self-conscious about the staining that she changed to metal brackets on both top and bottom.

So far I've managed to avoid staining by staying away from red wine and tumeric, and using a whitening mouthwash. I do drink heaps of tea so the ligs go a bit yellow but I get them changed every visit.

Ceramic brackets are definitely not as noticeable - the other day a friend who I hadn't seen since I got braces asked me if I had a retainer on the top and bottom - all he could see was the wire!

#8 Post by **treelessbark** » Tue May 05, 2009 2:24 pm

I got ceramics on top and bottom. I was gonna get them just on top and metal on bottom. Mostly to put colors on them, and no one really sees the bottom, but they just did it on both.

My ortho said it's more "uncomfortable" to have ceramics removed usually. Haha. (i love when doctors say uncomfortable when they mean, "it hurts more, get over it" haha)

The main reason i got ceramics in the first place was cause I'm only 22 (got braces at 21) and look 17 or so, and I didn't want to look EVEN YOUNGER with all metal.

#9 Post by **DrJasonKTam** » Tue May 05, 2009 3:12 pm

rolo wrote:Dr Jason

Would it be possible to use something like molar build-ups or something else to stop the top teeth hitting the bottom brackets, if a patient had a deep bite and really wanted ceramics on the bottom? Are there any other possible ways round this or does a deep bite prevent use of ceramic brackets on the bottom teeth?

Theoretically this is possible. However, there may still be some contact when your jaw moves laterally. The other problem occurs when molar buildups come off, and there is even a short period of time where the tooth wear can occur.

If one were to use the buildups, it may be many months before alignment and intrusion of the anterior teeth/extrusion of the posterior teeth, can occur. Another possibility is to bracket the upper teeth first, and begin bite opening first, followed by bonding of the lower arch. The negative side of this method is that treatment will take longer.

In deep bite cases, there isn't really an indication to use ceramic brackets since most of the time, the bottom teeth are covered by the top teeth as a result of the deep bite. That being said, we do put ceramic brackets on lower teeth in non-deep bite treatments but always advise that tooth wear is possible, even if they are not touching the bottom brackets when the teeth are closed.

Wed May 06, 2009 4:48 am

Hey Everyone,

I'm getting my braces put on soon and reading all of your posts has been comforting. Im super excited although what Im not excited about is having a jaw surgery done 3/4 of the way through my treatment to align my overbite. The othro said it's my choice as to which way I want to go and without Surgery he can still correct the majority of my over bite but he said for asthetic reasons he would recommend me getting the surgery in order to have the best results. So I have to make the decision before starting treatment what Im wondering is if anyone else is or has had the surgery? It's quite expensive and I have heard of people having the jaw relaspe to the original position so Im wondering whether its worth it for me to go ahead with the surgery? Any insight would be greatly appreaciated.

#11 Post by **rolo** » Wed May 06, 2009 5:57 am

Thanks to Dr Jason for sharing info on ceramic brackets. It's interesting having read some debate on the board, to hear a professional saying ceramic brackets do not slow tooth movement.

#12 Post by **sauerkraut** » Wed May 06, 2009 7:24 am

rolo, yes, I agree that's interesting information (& thanks to Dr Jason). To be honest, I've never really understood the debate about ceramics supposedly being slower. I've always regarded the brackets as simply being the device that hold the archwire on the teeth, whilst the archwire is what makes the teeth move. So I couldn't really understand why it should make that much difference what the brackets are made of. (But then I always did have a rather simplistic way of looking at things

)

In response to the OP: I have Inovation C (ceramic) on the "social 6" and Inovation R (metal) everywhere else. I opted for metal on most teeth because that was a bit cheaper. Also, with my overjet the social 6 are usually the only teeth you can see in my mouth, regardless of how widely I grin

Initially the ceramics were very discreet, but now I have a heavy duty wire with decorative mushroom loops in it so all discretion is gone

(Not that that worries me). I've never had any problems with staining (don't have any ligs) and I can't say I have noticed any difference at all between the metal and the ceramic in terms of comfort, bulkiness, speed of movement or anything else.

23ngettingbraced: There's a whole forum full of bods at various stages of various surgical procedures. It sounds like your ortho might be recommending you the op that I'm lined up for (to bring the lower jaw forward). To find out about people who've already been through it take a look at the Oral (Orthognathic) Surgery forum:

viewforum.php?f=15&sid=f240d16b0f3f723176780278daff2854

Metal Mouth Message Board

why not ceramic on bottom too?

why not ceramic on bottom too?

variety of reasons

ceramics on lower teeth...

Getting In Ovation c's on the 21st of May