SARPE Surgery

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#721 Post by **crazybeautiful** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 7:01 am

Ok, so my surgery is next Friday. I came in and my ortho was like 'So, you've got a date haven't you?' and I'm like well nobody told me! The receptionist got in a muddle and didn't post the info! Oh well, I know now

So it's pretty short notice, but hey, I don't mind. The thing is though, I've just paid to go on a cool trip for one of my college courses and now I can't go

. I was really looking forward to it, but this is more important of course. Still annoyed though

So I'm getting the expander in the day before, which is good, and I'm getting my wisdom teeth removed in preparation for my main surgery (to correct underbite) next year or whenever. But not my two wisdom teeth on top, just the bottom ones. I thought they'd need removing for this op., but I guess not.

I asked the surgeon how much time off and she said maybe 3 weeks because of the swelling and bruising, but I don't care what I look like really. I hate to say but I'd rather not miss too much college

Everyone's posts have been a great help by the way, so thank you

Emma x

#722 Post by **Delag** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 2:22 pm

Crazy - is there any way you can push back the surgery so you can go on your trip? I know you want to get the surgery over with, but sometimes these life experiences shouldn't be missed.

#723 Post by **Ashley09** » Tue Nov 13, 2007 9:44 am

Okay...so I go for my records appointment today and am starting to freak out a bit..the "Oh my God, what have I gotten myself into" thoughts have started to seep in...

I was torn between just getting my top teeth braced and having a cosmetically nice smile...or having SARPE and all my teeth braced to fix my bite, prevent future TMJ issues, make my smile nicer, etc. I had decided SARPE was the way to go, but now I'm wondering if it is really worth it. My teeth work fine, I don't have any jaw pain or chronic headaches...my smile is just not very pretty.

So my question to you: Do you think I would be able to get my top teeth braced and see the result...and then decide if I want to go back and do the SARPE? It seems kinda out of order, but I've heard of people having thier braces on for over a year before having the surgery..and treatment time for just my top teeth is 1.5 years...I'll have to ask my ortho but just wondering if you guys have heard of anyone doing this...

Help...I'm panicking already and I'm only having records done today!

#724 Post by **Delag** » Tue Nov 13, 2007 12:50 pm

Ashley - You are me one ....ok two years ago. I also struggled with the same issues you are now dealing with. Â´There is nothing wrong with me so why am I doing this?Â´ In fact, I would say that every person on this board has gone through that stage. I think you will find that once the ball starts rolling, you will feel a bit better. Fear of the unknown can really knock your socks off. Read through Brandy's blog - she has helped me more than I can say.

To answer your question, yes you can have braces on first. I have had my braces on for 13 months and will have my SARPE on Dec. 1. You really need to have a talk with your orthodontist and ask questions. He/she may have very sound reasons why they would like to do the surgery first, or it may just be a question of having a shorter treatment time or some such thing. If you can, take full advantage of your appointment today and ask everything you can think of ... and then ask them if there is anything you forgot to ask

Let us know how it went when you got back!

#725 Post by **Delag** » Tue Nov 13, 2007 12:56 pm

Forgot to ask my question

Has anyone had their SARPE with their archwire in? Went to get my spacers for my RPE this morning and asked the doctor when I would get the wire out -he said it would stay in. I have a segmented wire (3 pieces) but I don't recall seeing anyone else do it this way.

#726 Post by **Ashley09** » Tue Nov 13, 2007 1:34 pm

Delag...Thanks for your response! I just got back and you're right - I could wait and make a decision about the SARPE later. My ortho said the problem with waiting is that the overall treatment time is going to be longer and there will be additional costs. He explained the pros and cons of both ways to me so I feel way better about it. I'm about 98% sure I'm gonna do it...Go big or go home right?

I wish I could help you with your SARPE/archwire question but I don't have a clue! I'm sure someone will have some experience to share with you

#727 Post by **Delag** » Tue Nov 13, 2007 2:55 pm

That is kind of the way I feel about it as well Ashley. Just get it over with in one big bang. Have they given you a date yet?

#728 Post by **Ashley09** » Wed Nov 14, 2007 9:44 am

Delag...My consult with the surgeon is early January and I should get a date then. My ortho is guessing around April, but that will depend on the availability of the surgeon - He is very busy! (I took that as a good sign!)

I will likely get braced before Christmas though, so at least I can get started with something. The more I think about it, the more I just wanna get this train rolling so I can get it over with!

When are you scheduled for SARPE?

#729 Post by **Brandyleigh35** » Wed Nov 14, 2007 10:55 am

I had my SARPE with my archwire in. When my OS did the surgery he just left my archwire alone. When I went back at my one week visit they just took a look at things but didn't change the wire. When I went back a week later, they again just left things. When I was all done expanding and things had healed a bit (around 8-10 weeks) then my archwire was changed for the first time. It really was when we were trying to close the gap at that point.

It really was no big deal at all having the archwire in, it is really a very weak wire, mostly meant to get your teeth loosened up and ready for movement. and I think the wire helped with stability during the whole expansion process.

Hope this helps.

Brandy

#730 Post by **Delag** » Wed Nov 14, 2007 11:12 am

I'll be darned Brandy! Here I thought I had read you blog inside and out, but I had not noticed that detail. Guess I wasn't looking for it at the time. I wonder if the wire helped your gap stay so little...if I remember you snipped off the evil powerchain pretty early SPAM SPAM SPAMMING. As always, thank you!

Ashley - I will be having my SARPE on December 1st. I got my spacers in yesterday (had buccal brackets), I'll get bands and fitted for the RPE next Tuesday, and the dreaded RPE will probably go in Friday of next week .. but I will try to push it to the following week so I don't have it in any longer than necessary. My ortho works out of another office one week each month so it might have to go in sooner than I would like.

#731 Post by **MGood** » Wed Nov 14, 2007 1:12 pm

Hi everyone.
I love that this thread stays going, it was such a huge help to me pre-SARPE.

So... I am RPE FREE!! It feels so strange! My tongue doesn't know what to do with all of that extra space! He did put in a TPA, but that isn't bad at all. I can honestly say that I might even be able to forget that it's in there. They also put my bottom braces on. This seems to be the worst part. My lower cheeks and gums are much more sore and tender than I remember my top ones being. OUCH!!! Did anyone else notice this? The inside of my bottom lip and cheeks is already filled with sores. Looks liek I'll be gargling with alot of saltwater.

Delag,
I was reading your post and I was going to tell you to read Brandy's blog, and them poof. Brandy was there. She is such an enormous wealth of information!

Sauerkraut,
Glad to hear you had a nice time despite the RPE. My lips are still pretty sore. I just keep applying the vaseline constantly and hydrocortisone from time to time. I just think alot has happened to them since surgery, they are upset about it.

Crazy Beautiful,
Good luck with your surgery on Friday. I'm sure all will go well. I am really pleased with my results so far. I'm sorry you have to miss your trip though:(

Ashley09,
I think your making the right decsion. Is it just the SARPE you have to have or will there be another surgery in your future?

Take care!
Michelle

http://www.myorthojourney.blogspot.com/

#732 Post by **Ashley09** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 10:30 am

MGood...My orhto has only mentioned SARPE, but I haven't been to see the Oral Surgeon yet. I'm still flip-flopping on having the SARPE, so if he even mentions additional surgeries, I'm pulling the plug on the whole thing and just getting my top teeth braced. I came into this just wanting a pretty smile, not a new face!

I am still on the fence with the idea of having SARPE. I am not looking forward to the RPE device, or the extra time I will have in braces. Then on top of it, my boyfriend says "well, I guess we won't be getting married any time soon". We've been talking marriage for a while (and I was hoping to get married in 2009) but there's no way I'm walking up the isle with my braces! I'm such a whiner, but I really don't know which way to go on this one...Plus, I don't really wanna spend $200 on the surgeon consult just to change my mind and not do it...Help...somebody, anybody...Thanks for listening to me ramble...

And good luck and speedy recovery to those of you with upcoming surgeries. I'm sure everything will go smoothly!

#733 Post by **wardenclyffe** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 12:08 pm

So Ashley,

You are looking for a pretty smile. Is SARPE supposed to give you that? I suspect that they are recommending SARPE for reasons other than that. You said something about future TMJ issues.

I have an open bite, which meant that my upper and lower teeth met only in the back of my mouth, so all the pressure of chewing on just a couple of teeth was causing them to break. My SARPE procedure was designed to help correct that problem. So far, so good. A lot more of my teeth are already contacting each other (at least on one side of my mouth). I still might need a second surgery to complete the job. I'm hoping not. I completely understand the desire to avoid surgery. I am in my early 40s, so clearly this was an entrenched problem that I needed to deal with. I suspect that you are significantly younger than that.

If you can see what SARPE is going to correct, it's much easier to make that choice, if it's some vague future promise of a lack of problems that you don't already have, that's tough. I think you need to have a very clear answer to why they are recommending this. This is a question that your orthodontist should be able to answer clearly. I don't think that the oral surgeon will have any better or more informed answers about why you would need surgery. His or her job is to perform the surgery and say "so long." Your orthodontist is the one who has to formulate the strategy and make it work over the long term. That's who has to provide answers for you.

Michelle. Congrats! I finally had my celebratory lobster dinner. I ate 8 lobsters!!! It was all you can eat.

Ward

#734 Post by **Ashley09** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 3:14 pm

Ward - 8 lobsters!!! Impressive!!!

I was told there was a "function" reason and an "esthetic" reason for the SARPE. Function: crossbite correction Esthetic: widen my (extremely) narrow jaw so I will have more of a "Hollywood" smile.

My ortho said that a crossbite can lead to TMJ problems, but I have never shown any symptoms. I should note as well that the crossbite is not causing any problems (with eating, tooth breakages, etc.) - I didn't even know I had one. Esthetically, he said just top braces would give me a great smile, but the SARPE would make it better as it would be wider. I guess I'm struggling because I don't know how much better I will look with a wider smile, versus what I look like now.

Thanks for the heads up re: the oral surgeon. I was under the impression that he would have final say regarding what surgeries I would require.

For the record, I am almost 25, though I know all the whining and complaining in my last post made me sound like I am 14.

I've been back and forth about it in my head so much that I had to spill to some people who actually understand that it's a tough decision.

#735 Post by **Delag** » Thu Nov 15, 2007 3:42 pm

Ashley - how many orthodontists have you seen? I saw 4 or 5 before I came to any decisions. Each one had a slightly different take on the state of my mouth, and hearing all they had to say really helped me make up my mind. The oral surgeon was the most conservative of all the doctors I saw. He said ' no one has ever died from a bad bite.'

Like you, my problems were minor. Granted I had cracked a molar, but the damage was already done - it was just a matter of having to redo my crowns every 2 or 3 years vs. every 10. I had popping and clicking of the TMJ, but no pain. It is all a bit of a guessing game. If you don't do it, will you have problems later? This is the big question. If I knew then what I know now, I would have had surgery at 25. I would have avoided expensive and painful dental work, braces at 40, and having to do all this while taking care of kids. I must confess that I am a bit of a control freak and perfectionist - knowing my bite was so off would have bothered me every day if I didn't fix it. But that is just me.

If you are still so unsure, you should consider getting more opinions before you get your braces on - it is money well spent. Go see what the OS has to say - $200 isn't that much for some peace of mind. Unless you are 100% sure you want to go ahead - don't do it. This process is too hard to go through if you are not sure.