Metal Mouth Message Board

I came upon this site looking for information on adult braces. Nice little setup you have here. Don't worry, I'm not posting about any fetishes!

A little history on me: I'm 27, married with a baby boy. When I was a kid, I had a retainer to push my top molars out, but they've since curved back in. I still have my wisdom teeth, which is apparently uncommon.

I just had a consultation with an orthodontist after some pretty unbearable toothaches. He wants to do two years of braces (I'm sure they tell everyone it's "only" two years), and possibly oral surgery to de-fuse my upper palette, since it's apparently too narrow.

I'm not entirely sure I want to go through with this, so I'm here for a little affirmation. My teeth don't look too bad, so I have no cosmetic incentive for getting braces. I just don't want to have another toothache like I had a few weeks ago. I'm trying to decide if living with periodic toothaches is more acceptable than having to shell out $5k+ and endure braces for a couple years.

The braces would be mainly to correct crossbite on both sides, though it's notably worse on one side (the one that always gets the toothaches). The oral surgery creeps the hell out of me.

So that's that. Any thoughts? Is this ultimately worth going through?

KK wrote:I recommend you have at least another two consults with orthodontists, so you can hear what 'options' they consider you have. Three is the minimum recommended to help a person make a well informed decision.

Thanks for the tip. Actually, one of the orthodontists in the area is someone I went to high school with! I'm considering him, along with the ortho that did my brother-in-law's braces (who also got them done in his late 20s).

It took me a while to get over the "thud" of possibly needing braces. However, reading this site has actually helped me a lot. I'm still not sure I'm going to go through with it, but I feel better about it, anyway.

I've had minor toothaches for years, always between the same two teeth. The two days of significant pain from a couple weeks ago were a first, and I've noticed occasional discomfort since then. Maybe my teeth have finally had enough of being crooked.

Still, that $5k would buy a lot of Advil for toothaches!

(edited: apparently, I'm incapable of making the bbCode work)

I can only address the braces and wisdom teeth aspect of your post.

I got braces at 42 to fix crowding. I got them off in 21 months and am VERY pleased with the result and don't regret the treatment AT ALL.

I still have 2 of my wisdom teeth, both on one side. Had the other 2 removed at 39 because of an infection in 1...thought I'd get ride of the other on that side while the oral surgeon was in there causing pain already.

It is not uncommon to have all 4 these days. My dentist and ortho don't think I need to have the other two out unless one or both have the same problem as the other one did.

Hi Skyhawk,
My 2 cents worth is related to your bite. If that is a problem, it will probably only get worse, with more crowding and shifting, which can lead to TMJ problems (PAIN), tooth erosions, gum problems, decay. So in the long run, you will be saving yourself plenty of $$$$$$. Consider this-- an average crown costs @$1200-1500. Add a root canal to that, and you have spent over half of your $5K investment for braces. And even if you have dental insurance, you will still end up paying plenty out of pocket (including the cost of the insurance, and it is a toss up as to whether it is even worth it to have it (depending on your plan, of course). Between my husband and I, last year our out of pocket dental was over $6000, and that was with insurance. And it has been in the $4000+ range for a number of years. We are both in our 60's. But of course, it is still up you to be diligent with your oral and general health all the time. Make sure you really understand what the problem is that the ortho expects to correct, and what are the various options available to make that happen. And what could happen if you don't address the issues now.
Good luck. Let us know what you decide.

An update: I had a follow-up visit at the ortho a couple weeks after my first post. He took some more X-rays and talked me through my options.

Basically, he advocated oral surgery to widen my upper palette, and braces to correct other various bite/alignment issues.

Today, I had a consult with a different ortho to get a second opinion. Without telling him what the first guy had told me, he basically had the same opinion: my crossbite cannot be fully eliminated without surgery.

I have a consult in a couple weeks with an oral surgeon that ortho #1 referred me to. I'll be interested to hear what the surgeon says.

I read a few pages of the huge SARPE thread, and to be honest, it's not making me look forward to the surgery, should I end up getting it.

I was considering going to a third ortho, but I don't think the answer would be any different.

Quick, someone make me feel better about moving forward with this!