Metal Mouth Message Board

I finally got my spacers today (Around my first upper molars.) They don't hurt... yet. Just feels chewy and weird, like food stuck in my teeth. I'm getting fitted for a TPA July 5th and then he's putting it in July 21st. But question[s]: Are these spacers just for the fitting? Will the space created stay until I get the TPA or is he going to just put the bands on the 5th too? Or am I going to wear spacers again?

He was very busy and I didn't get a chance to bombard him with questions.

It depends on how tight the contact is between your teeth. The spacers are forcing your teeth apart so that there's enough room for the TPA to fit when they install it. For me, I had spacers for about 5 or 6 days and then had an appointment to fit my molar bands. It was pretty obvious that the spacers hadn't been in long enough and they needed to create more space so they put the spacers back in until my next appointment when they put the molar bands in (which was like 3 weeks or so). So.. to answer your question.. it depends on whether or not the space is big enough for your TPA. I imagine they'll put spacers in again though to make sure the space stays wide enough for your appliance. They're a pain in the butt, but the bright side is that they'll eventually be out! lol

Good luck!

Thank you. They're giving me a bit of a headache (I think they're causing it, anyway.) My teeth are okay so far, thankfully. Knock wood! They are a pain. I'm tired of them, but I'm okay. I hope the TPA doesn't drive me too crazy. But I'm very excited to have straight teeth in the near future.