Metal Mouth Message Board

Hi everyone,

I would really appreciate some good advice please. I am 29 years and have quite a severe open bite approx 6mm and only my 2 back teeth touch.

I do not have nay pain or discomfort. One of the reasons for seeking an orthodontist was to see if there was anyway my bite could be closed non surgically. I have been getting some very conflicting information. The first ortho said he would use TAG's with braces to intrude the molars therefore improving my bite. He was not sure how much improvement he would get and could offer no guarantees that it would be a success.

My second consultation which I had today, the orthodontist said straight away that surgery and braces was the only way. I advised him that I was not interested in surgery and he advised me not to waste my money on TAD'S as it would only relapse and if I was pain free to just live with it as he also agreed the surgery is quite brutal.

Surgery is not really an option for me. I suffer with anxiety and have a phobia of hospitals unless of course its life threatening which it quite clearly is not. Please could anyone offer me some advice on here. I live in Melbourne, Aus. If anyone has been through something similar please let yourself be known. I know of one other person who has had a similar problem to me on this forum and had TAD's and braces just removed so its to early to tell whether the open bite will relapse.

Is there anyone on here who has chosen to accept there open bite and live with it. I am at the stage where I am just going to have to accept it unless there is a non-surgical approach.

I look forward to any constructive comments. Thanks guys.

ajs604 wrote:Hi everyone,

I would really appreciate some good advice please. I am 29 years and have quite a severe open bite approx 6mm and only my 2 back teeth touch.

I do not have nay pain or discomfort. One of the reasons for seeking an orthodontist was to see if there was anyway my bite could be closed non surgically. I have been getting some very conflicting information. The first ortho said he would use TAG's with braces to intrude the molars therefore improving my bite. He was not sure how much improvement he would get and could offer no guarantees that it would be a success.

My second consultation which I had today, the orthodontist said straight away that surgery and braces was the only way. I advised him that I was not interested in surgery and he advised me not to waste my money on TAD'S as it would only relapse and if I was pain free to just live with it as he also agreed the surgery is quite brutal.

Surgery is not really an option for me. I suffer with anxiety and have a phobia of hospitals unless of course its life threatening which it quite clearly is not. Please could anyone offer me some advice on here. I live in Melbourne, Aus. If anyone has been through something similar please let yourself be known. I know of one other person who has had a similar problem to me on this forum and had TAD's and braces just removed so its to early to tell whether the open bite will relapse.

Is there anyone on here who has chosen to accept there open bite and live with it. I am at the stage where I am just going to have to accept it unless there is a non-surgical approach.

I look forward to any constructive comments. Thanks guys.

They can only correct an open bite through surgery I am afraid. Like you, I had one. And in order to fix it, they will have to break your top and bottom jaw.

I say go for it anyway, it will improve your appearance, and give you the ability to

Please tell me more about your expereinces?

Can anyone share there expereinces please. Thanks

Hi I have read several papers on the internet see one below which says open bites can be closed:

http://www.dypdentaljournals.com/2007/d ... shetty.pdf

Thanks

Hi,

a successful ortho treatment for the open bite for her :

http://www.archwired.com/phpbb2/viewtop ... =9&t=36146

But less successful for me :

http://www.archwired.com/phpbb2/viewtop ... =9&t=27507

My bite is now exactly like yours : "open bite approx 6mm and only my 2 back teeth touch".
And still I believe a skilled ortho should be able to at least improve an anterior open bite like ours.

hi i had braces fitted about 9 months ago in preperation for a severe openbite correction,
my bite is open 10mm a the front with only 2 molers touching at the back,iv trawled the internet for years looking for away to avoide surgery,i found one case of an mexican chap that had his openbite corrected by TADS,it was a verylongwinded process 2years + ,but iv not seen weather his has relapsed afta the braces wer removed, i mentioned it to my ortho ,he sead i could have tads but the chances are i would relapse and waiste years of my time, and could end up with more dental problems due to the amount of pulling my teeth would have to undergo,surgery is a scary option but if you look on youtube at all the sucsess storys i think it will help to ease your mind.do not wach the actual surgery videos thow i did,still getting the surgery thow,cant wait to bee able to bite again lol,goodlook on your open bite journy, may the force be with you;)

My bite was exactly like yours. I too was looking into TADs, but after consulting with several orthodontists and doing my own research, I decided against it. I went with the surgical option, even though I was anxious about it, and I am so glad I did. I'm seven weeks post-op now, and while the first two weeks were extremely hard, it was all worth it. I now have a beautiful, functional bite. The experience just after surgery was not pleasant, and there were a few times I asked myself why I did it, but times goes by so quickly and recovery gets easier each and every day. For me, having such a huge open bite, TADs just weren't going to cut it since too little is known about their stability. Surgery really is the way to go.

Hi tahnks for all your replies.

I have watched some of the U Tube Videos on people who talk about there surgical experiences. I am still very anti surgery though. I understand taht surgery is the only way to get the perfect bite, but I really do not think I could go through with it. Its such an invasive procedure. There must be other options including TAD's. I am 29 so lived with this problem for the majority of my life - its only recently I have started to notice it more. I have been told that it cant get any worse though.

Clo wrote:Hi,

a successful ortho treatment for the open bite for her :

http://www.archwired.com/phpbb2/viewtop ... =9&t=36146

But less successful for me :

http://www.archwired.com/phpbb2/viewtop ... =9&t=27507

My bite is now exactly like yours : "open bite approx 6mm and only my 2 back teeth touch".
And still I believe a skilled ortho should be able to at least improve an anterior open bite like ours.

Hi Clo,

I have been reading your story. What an orderal to go through. So what are your plans now with your Open Bite? I am still trying to find an Ortho which will atempt to correct it - surgery is not an option for me.

ajs604 wrote:Hi tahnks for all your replies.

I have watched some of the U Tube Videos on people who talk about there surgical experiences. I am still very anti surgery though. I understand taht surgery is the only way to get the perfect bite, but I really do not think I could go through with it. Its such an invasive procedure. There must be other options including TAD's. I am 29 so lived with this problem for the majority of my life - its only recently I have started to notice it more. I have been told that it cant get any worse though.

For a 6mm open bite, I doubt there are other options. You will wear out your back four teeth, and then need implants, which you will wear out regularly.

It can get worse.

I'm also anti-surgery, but in this case you're looking at a number of health problems as you get older if you do nothing. This is not just a cosmetic procedure. Take it seriously, check with several surgeons, and get it done now while you're young.