De-calcification

[crooked rory]

Has anyone had problems with decalcification? I have been trying my best to keep my teeth clean, and using Sensadyn Pronamel. Dr Patel, my general dentist did a cleaning today, and though I had more tartar than desired behind my teeth, they were all good. She could not find anything wrong with the cold sensitive tooth I mentioned in another post, and thinks that it is due to the way the tooth is moving. She could not hit anything sensitive probing around, and said that since there is no pressure or heat sensitivity, it is highly unlikely that there is any underlying damage. I did hurt when I rinsed with tapwater after the cleaning. She got me a glass of very warm water, and the pain just dissappeared. So I need not worry about it falling out She did point out an area near the gum on that tooth (upper right cuspid) that was decalcified, and suggested I use Sensadyn Pronamel. When I told her that I have been using that since ~10/5/11, she gave me a creme to put on it after brushing. It is called "GC MI Paste Plus". It is a topical creme with "calcium phosphate and flouride" and "Recaldent". Has anyone used this product? I plan on starting it tonight, and hopefully it helps the sensitivity.

[Snowglobe32]

That might be the cream my hygientist was telling me about. It was a new product they would be carrying soon. It may not be the same brand you will be using. I believe she told me it would be good after my braces came off. If it works, please let us know.

[sirwired]

Sounds like a prescription-strength fluoride treatment, with the calcium helpfully mixed in so your teeth don't have to snatch it from your passing flow of saliva.

[Roboto]

I use a prescription fluoride toothpaste for my decalcification that I developed from my first round in braces. I took awful care of my teeth back then. I feel like I must have tried to rot my teeth out of my head or something. Anyway, I haven't noticed any difference in my decalc, but that doesn't mean there isn't any (I'm sure it's very gradual). Just keep on brushing and flossing!

[ArchWired28]

I am awfully scared of the decalc stains after braces! I am not using anything specific for that, but I do brush after every meal in addition to morning and evening which brings it to an average of 4 brushings a day. I look at my teeth closely and not noticing any changes in color so far. DOes it mean that I have nothing to worry about it terms of decalcification?

[jamsmak04]

I have been using MI Paste plus since my first day of braces. I was bad with my teeth as a child and have a couple small decalcification spots on my teeth. I just wanted to be extra safe. So far so good. I buy mine off ebay.

[Jano]

what is decalcification please ?

[sirwired]

De-calcification is where a plaque film acidifies and slowly strips some of the calcium from your dental enamel. It shows up as bright white unremovable spots, most obviously after the removal of brackets. (And of course where the brackets themselves were, there are no spots, since they were covered in cement.) The reason this occurs is because the normal "wiping" action of your lips and tongue can't get to the tooth surface any more so plaque buildup occurs pretty much every time food or calorie-containing drink enters your mouth. In extreme cases I suppose it could cause cavities, but I understand that to be quite rare.

De-calcification is why careful oral hygiene while in braces is so important, and also why you should be using at least a once-a-day fluoride rinse to help re-calcify before it becomes a problem.

[ArchWired28]

I asked about decalcification during my last appointment. The tech said that as long as I brush after every meal and floss at least once a day, this should not be a problem. She also said that additional measures like rinsing and waterpic are not necessary to maintain good oral hygiene. She specifically said about waterpic, don't waste your money. I know many people on this forum love waterpic, and I was contemplating to buy one, but I will probably follow the tech's advice and stick to my routine.

By the way, I had one bracket repositioned during my last appt. I specifically requested a mirror to expect the tooth. Thankfully, I saw NOTHING looking like decalc. There was no difference in the color or appearance of the tooth, that me or her were able to notice. So I relaxed a little bit about that. I do agree that proper brushing is key to keeping decalc stains away.

[Huggypillow]

Hi
im so glad someone posted this topic and for the record, i floss every day, i use oral b electric brush morning and night, i waterpick extra only when at home after meals, i use a very good mouthwash.

at my last cleaning 2 very small sesame dots appeared at the gumline of 2 teeth. now i have the special cream to apply as well. I doubt it has an issue with hugiene and comments otherwise make me a bit upset. i am very routine and another point which noone has thought of is at my age of 29 for some reason i seem to have a slight calicum defficent problem and my Dr told me to take calicum tablets.

aparantly for some people through no fault of our own our body zaps or calicum and the first places its seen is teeth and fingernails.

it has stressed me but fortunatly my 2 spots are very small and couldnt be seen at a prior cleaning due to my tooth having moved down and rotated and now it can be seen. thats why my ortho thinks suddenly now it can be seen.

[Huggypillow]

plus i brush after my meals and rince with water after drinking anything.

sorry it sounded like i didnt brush that much from my previous post

[BracedInNOLA]

my age of 29 for some reason i seem to have a slight calicum defficent problem and my Dr told me to take calicum tablets.

aparantly for some people through no fault of our own our body zaps or calicum and the first places its seen is teeth and fingernails.

The next place is likely to be your bones, so make sure you DO take that calcium supplement AND do weight-bearing exercises to help prevent bone loss.

[midnight]

Hmmm... I think i might be showing signs of decalcification (or maybe I am just being extremely paranoid!) but i'm brushing morning, evening and after every meal using sensodyne pronamel, using alcohol-free mouthwash in the mornings and then a fluoride one designed for brace wearers at night, and using floss, the waterpik and interdental brushes every day. I've stopped eating sweet things and not drinking anything other than water or fruit tea. I've started taking calcium supplements this week but not sure what else I can do? I don't see the ortho until 6th Feb and i'm starting to worry a bit about it getting worse - so far it's only on the bicuspids but i can definitely see a white area at the top of these teeth. I've only had my braces a month - can it happen this quickly or is it something else?

[sirwired]

What's your brushing technique? Many techniques perfectly valid for non-brace wearers don't get braces clean. I start by (gently!) brushing in circles against the half of the outside tooth surface close to gums with the brush perpendicular to the teeth. You want to make sure the bristles gently scrub against the gumline. I then follow up with a round at a 45-degree angle towards the wire pointing down, and then a round pointing up. This cleans underneath the wire and against the cement. Takes me about four minutes. (If it takes you less then three minutes to brush, you are going way too fast.) You should be using a soft or extra-soft toothbrush with a small head. (I'm not sure why firm toothbrushes are even sold... the only thing they are good for is scrubbing tile grout; you should never use them on your teeth!)

Ask your ortho for plaque disclosure drops or tablets and see how they look after brushing to figure out if there is anything you can do.

Another point: Just stopping "sweet things" between meals isn't enough. Literally anything with carbohydrates in it (say, crackers, potato chips, bread, etc.) might as well be sugar from the standpoint of braces plaque formation. (It only takes a couple minutes for the enzymes in your saliva to convert starches into sugar. Try it! Chew a cracker but don't swallow it for a couple of minutes; you'll find out it tastes quite sweet after just a short period of time.) To keep it from forming plaque you need to brush every time carbs touch your teeth.

Your ortho may also provide you with a prescription-strength fluoride rinse.

[midnight]

Well I swapped to a soft toothbrush (was using medium before) and brush again the gum line, then i brush along the brackets, then like you said, brush at 45 degree angle down and then up (i think it was probably your earlier post about that on here that i read so started doing that from about day . I tend to do most of it with an electric toothrbush which is about 2-3 mins and then switch to normal toothbrush to angle as I find that the bristle are a bit longer so easier to get inbetween the gaps (probably about another minute).

Ask your ortho for plaque disclosure drops or tablets and see how they look after brushing to figure out if there is anything you can do.

Will have a look in the shops for these this week otherwise I'll go into a local dentist and see if they have any.

Another point: Just stopping "sweet things" between meals isn't enough. Literally anything with carbohydrates in it (say, crackers, potato chips, bread, etc.) might as well be sugar from the standpoint of braces plaque formation. (It only takes a couple minutes for the enzymes in your saliva to convert starches into sugar. Try it! Chew a cracker but don't swallow it for a couple of minutes; you'll find out it tastes quite sweet after just a short period of time.) To keep it from forming plaque you need to brush every time carbs touch your teeth.

I brush every time I have anything to eat/drink (other than water) but I do eat a lot of carbs... (mostly pasta/rice rather that crackers/break/crisps though)

Thanks for the suggestions - will give them a go and try and see if my local hygienist can fit me in next week so i can at least get an opinion on whether that's what it is. I just can't stop looking in the mirror which probably makes it worse as all i can see is new imperfections all the time - it could be that they've always bee like this i guess...