Expander (RPE) - How long????

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#1 Post by **sarahintx** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 11:02 am

I had a RPE (expander) put in when I got my braces. I'm somewhat getting used to it but still not talking like my old self. I was just wondering who else has has had one and how long do you typically have to wear it?

#2 Post by **milliondollar** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 9:30 pm

I had an NPE which is a little different, but mine was in for 4-5 months. I hated every minute of it but it did do its job!

#3 Post by **crazybeautiful** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 7:14 am

I'd say an average would be 4-6 months, 6 being the most common time period (expecially for surgical expansion)

#4 Post by **zeira** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 10:16 am

It sounds like you are not getting a surgical expansion, is that right? There have been other people on the board who expanded non-surgically, maybe you can find more details about their cases if you look around. How much expansion do you need?

#5 Post by **sarahintx** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 12:47 pm

You are correct, this is a non surgical expansion. Thank goodness. I don't recall my ortho telling me how far my molars would have to move. If I had to guess I would probably say about half a cm on each side though.

#6 Post by **uvraise** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 1:38 pm

I have a palatal expander in now, non-surgical, it was put in on the 16th of June. I was done turning it on the the 16th of July. I have a Hyrax with buccal bars. At my last Ortho appt, I though it was coming out, but they just ground off the buccal bars. I hope at my next appt, this Thurs, it comes out. You'll never be able to say Sally sells seashells by the seashore without sounding like a moron, but it does get pretty good over time. My son, 7, had one placed a month before mine and had it removed last week! So' I'm a little jealous of him. I really think it depends on the Ortho, severity of you specific case, how far into you braces treatment you are ect. I'll follow up if I get this evil device out of my mouth! GOOD LUCK!

JOHN

#7 Post by **IceBlonde** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 1:46 pm

Hi,

I'm also going through a non-surgical expansion, and have had my quad helix in for 10 months! I have achieved mice expansion with it, but no word from my ortho about when he's taking it out...

Good luck to you with your treatment!

IceBlonde

#8 Post by **junkee** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 5:39 pm

i had mine on for about 3 months. I was originally told 6 months so it was quite a surprise when my ortho told me to make an appointment to remove it. Mine was non- surgical expansion and i was told to turn it 30 times, once every other day. I did stop a few turns short of that as i noticed my molars starting tipping. Overall, it did do its job. I took me about 5 weeks to get totally comfortable talking with it. The only word i had trouble with after that was the name of the company i work for.

#9 Post by **sarahintx** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 6:24 pm

You give me something to look forward to Junkee...I guess I'll cross my fingers and wait for the day when the ortho tells me it's time to take mine out. I'm turning mine every other day as well, beginning on August 31st.

#10 Post by **DrJasonKTam** » Mon Sep 21, 2009 6:40 pm

In phase 2 treatment, we like to keep the RPE in until we get a rectangular stainless steel archwire in the brackets. We tend to expand this somewhat to make sure there is something to help maintain the expansion.

The general consensus is that we want to allow bone to form within the expanded suture before removal as this is what keep the desired expansion after brackets are removed.

#11 Post by **amandad09** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 12:27 pm

I had an expander (non-surgical) for 4 months (Feb-June). I only turned it once a day for 2 weeks. I think my ortho is pretty conservative when it comes to non-surgical expansion, not wanting to expand too much and tip the molars. I'm not looking for a super wide arch, just enough so that all my teeth fit nicely aligned.