SARPE Surgery

Message

Sun Feb 01, 2009 11:26 am

Glad to hear you're recovering nicely, shari! I was so swollen my ortho couldn't believe it! I'm dreading what I'll look like when I have the bi-max; I do wonder if I'll even be able to fit my head through a door!

As for me- I still have a gap on my left side where I had my extraction. The right side one closed pretty quickly, and the left has slightly, but not fully and it's really doing my head in. Not that you can see it and I'm self-conscious (my underbite covers that issue

) but I just think it's keeping me from my next surgery which I cannot wait to have. Though to be fair, I can't have it done before May anyway because I'm at university.
I have an appointment mid-Feb so I'll see what's what then, but my ortho doesn't really keep my informed anyway....

#1112 Post by **sauerkraut** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 12:18 am

Good to hear of your progress, shari and CB! I was worried I might never find out how you all got on, when the board was down...

Shari you must be counting down the days till the expander comes out! And CB I hope you soon see some more rapid progress with closing the gaps. I have those joys still to come, as my ortho has not even started trying to close the gaps on my lower jaw yet, until we've decided whether I really need the next operation. He took records again at my last appointment, to plan his next move. As he was doing the biting on the wafer of wax bit I could hear him muttering to himself, "No, the lower jaw is just too far back..." so that sounds like surgery to me. Oh well, I shall find out in a month what he's got in store for me

Wed Feb 04, 2009 11:56 am

Yeah I was sad I wouldn't here from my SARPE buddies, but it's back now so thank you mod

Are you happy to go through with surgery then if that's what's going to happen? (well I guess not 'happy' but you know what I mean)

I remain hopeful that I can have my surgery this summer- but of course what do I know! I've only been braced for 8 or so months but apart from the gap, I think my teeth are pretty much in the right place; how perfectly aligned do they have to be, though? Summer 09 would just fit perfectly for me though....

I guess we'll both have to wait and see!

#1114 Post by **badbite** » Wed Feb 04, 2009 12:21 pm

Hey Crazyb, its me again, badbite. I am wondering the same question! I have had my uppers for eight months, and my lowers for a few months now. My teeth look pretty straight, except I have one rotated tooth the isn't wire tied yet on the bottom (I have a spring to make some room for it, ouch). The rest of my teeth lood pretty good, but my underbite is HORRIBLE! It will get worse as my bottom tooth is rotated into the proper position too. I took some pics. Boy, I didn't realize how gross may face looks! argh, wrinkly!!

I was going to ask the ortho about this, but he was in a big hurry at my last appt.

#1115 Post by **badbite** » Wed Feb 04, 2009 12:24 pm

Hey Crazyb, its me again, badbite. I am wondering the same question! I have had my uppers for eight months, and my lowers for a few months now. My teeth look pretty straight, except I have one rotated tooth the isn't wire tied yet on the bottom (I have a spring to make some room for it, ouch). The rest of my teeth lood pretty good, but my underbite is HORRIBLE! It will get worse as my bottom tooth is rotated into the proper position too. I took some pics. Boy, I didn't realize how gross may face looks! argh, wrinkly!!

I was going to ask the ortho about this, but he was in a big hurry at my last appt.

#1116 Post by **badbite** » Wed Feb 04, 2009 12:25 pm

Hey Crazyb, its me again, badbite. I am wondering the same question! I have had my uppers for eight months, and my lowers for a few months now. My teeth look pretty straight, except I have one rotated tooth the isn't wire tied yet on the bottom (I have a spring to make some room for it, ouch). The rest of my teeth lood pretty good, but my underbite is HORRIBLE! It will get worse as my bottom tooth is rotated into the proper position too. I took some pics. Boy, I didn't realize how gross may face looks! argh, wrinkly!!

I was going to ask the ortho about this, but he was in a big hurry at my last appt.

Wed Feb 04, 2009 12:37 pm

Hey badbite! I'd forgotten we have basically the same timelines for treatment so far!

Hopefully we'll both get sorted out soon!

Sun Feb 15, 2009 11:17 am

Just a bump to keep it afloat

My next app is Thurs at 9.20am (why God, why?

) so hopefully I'll get something done to close my gap. I'm starting to think that it isn't closing because I sleep predominantly on my left side so there is constant pressure on it through the night keeping it where it is. Paranoid? Perhaps

#1119 Post by **shari** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 9:43 am

I am patiently awaiting my next appt (March 17th). Now that I have a date for the expander to come out, the wait seems impossible.

I am quite annoyed with my bite since the surgery, so I'm really looking forward to getting the bottom braces started. My otho says he will get everything lined up with the use of elastics. I'm still quite skeptical about that but he hasn't let me down yet.

So...30 more days with this device and I'll be able to speak normally!

Sun Feb 22, 2009 9:23 am

So I had my app. and my ortho has given me a general estimate in that I should be ready for surgery in 6 months; so August. I'm glad I have some sort of timeline now, but depending on exactly when, August isn't the best month because I go back to uni in Sept. So if it's early August that's fine, or indeed if I'm ready sooner still that's even better! Any later is not so fine, so I'm hoping 6 months is a conservative over-estimate

Anyway I had my TPA taken out because my molars haven't moved (which of course they wouldn't with that thing on them)- it was generally a case of leave it on as long as we can to retain my jaw for as long as we can, and now was the time it needed to come off. I never really acknowledged it being in my mouth so it didn't bother me much, but when she took it out my mouth felt huge again like when I had my expander removed (it's a great feeling, shari, but also weird!); even though it's only a thin band of metal.

What else...oh I have 2 more of those blob things now, which are both along the same wire between the 2 teeth where the gap is on my left side. I asked on here a while back what they were because I have one of my lower arch too, but I've forgotten. And my ortho said the name of them but I forgot then too!

They're white-ish to translucent blobs anyway!

#1121 Post by **badbite** » Wed Feb 25, 2009 10:28 am

Crazy b, that is good that you got an estimate! I was going to ask the ortho yesterday at my visit, but I was in sooooo much pain that I didn't remember to ask. I HATE WIRE TIES!!!!!!! Anyhow, I finally have my rotated tooth banded. My top teeth are looking good, and my bottoms are coming along not that I have that last tooth wired tied, ouch.

#1122 Post by **sauerkraut** » Wed Feb 25, 2009 2:55 pm

Hi folks. Glad everyone's doing OK (sorry about the wire tie pain, tho, badbite).

My ortho told me today that he can't see any way to avoid more surgery. The lower jaw is too far back apparently. In answer to your earlier question, CB, I suppose I'm just sort of resigned to it as I was told to reckon with it from the first.

I didn't even ask for an estimate when the next op is likely to be. There's a 5mm gap either side in the lower teeth and I can imagine they'll take an eternity to close. I've got all manner of contraptions in my mouth now to get me started, including cute little springy things which the ortho seemed so proud of he got me to look at them in the mirror. And yes, wire ties also feature in the mix. Fun fun.

Wed Feb 25, 2009 3:11 pm

Glad to hear you've got your tooth banded finally; it will move to its correct place in no time. Sorry you're in pain; my teeth generally hurt for 3 days after my appts in which time even bread it painful to eat

My ortho is annoyingly tenacious sometimes though, and ends up inflicting more pain on my than is due! Like at my appt she couldn't get the larger wire through one molar band (we think I dented it with my bad bite rather than it being blocked), yet she tried and tried to shove it through anyway. She did the same with my first expander when it was too small, and that one was the worst pain I think. But hey, an ortho must inflict pain on us to give us our new bites.

She made me laugh as well, when looking in my mouth and saying 'you haven't got much of a bite now, have you?'- I said did I ever have much of a bite?!?!? Erm, no! I think it will take me some time to actually have a normal bite- I don't think my right teeth have touched at all for as long as I can remember. And of course we will end up with our top teeth slightly over our bottoms , badbite- how weird will that feel?

Oh, something I forgot to say which is pretty amusing so I have to share it. I was wearing a t-shirt which had a cartoon cheese looking lovingly at a jar of Branston Pickle (it reads 'Cheesus loves me'. I love it

), and ortho was saying that a kid who used to go to her kid's nursery was called Branston Pickle. Hello, how cruel can you be to a child? Honestly!

Sorry for the long posts lately- I just have a renewed excitement now I have a date to look forward to, albeit one that's a long way off

I should think you shouldn't be far behind badbite, once that tooth gets moving

Wed Feb 25, 2009 3:21 pm

Sorry there's no avoiding the surgery, sauerkraut. I suppose it will give you the best outcome though, and at least you're somewhat used to what it will be like since you've already had SARPE.

I'm wondering how she expects to close my gap, as all she added except the larger wire was those 2 blob thing I mentioned, But because they are between the gap, I don't understand how it can close because they are in the way. It's hard to explain without a picture, or knowing just what the hell these blob things are and what their purpose is! I've been googling blobs/orthodontics to no avail- not surprisingly!

#1125 Post by **sauerkraut** » Fri Feb 27, 2009 7:31 am

I take such comfort from your posts, CB. I feel better posting about springy things when I see you posting about blob things!

I have a theory about your blobs -- and it is only a theory. Might they be intended to stop the gap closing too fast (which I gather is unhealthy roots-wise), and/or to prevent the teeth tipping over sideways from the pressure? Just an idea...