Had braces 20 years ago - teeth moved back

[windycitycassie]

Hi everyone. :)

I had braces when I was a teenager and then was in a retainer until 20 or so. This was all to correct a Class III malocclusion (underbite) and I think to straighten my teeth a bit. Now that I'm in my 30s, my upper teeth are still gorgeous, but my lower incisors are crooked and bent forward and back and I have an end-to-end bite. It's actually a bit painful since my front teeth touch together when I bite and chew! Also, I notice that I can only really press the right side of my jaws together properly (those molars touch best). When I was a kid they'd recommended BSSO or IVRO surgery but my mum was scared of that so I didn't have it (not a HUGE underbite back then, maybe 3-4mm?).

How much of this can be fixed with braces? Anyone else gone through this twice? I will be seeing an orthodontist for a consultation tomorrow, but thought I'd ask the collective.

Thanks so much!

[wildpig]

Sorry to hear about your trouble ;(.

I have a coworker who had braces like 3 times since her teens. She did have class III. She had to have surgery this last time before bracing. I guess class III has a reputation for being nasty and hard to correct. Hard to say how much can and cant be correct since havent seen your pics and I am not an ortho, but my gut feeling is that there is only so much braces alone can do. You probably should be prepared to expect that surgery might be recommended. If it turns out that it's not needed, then you will be pleasantly surprised....

[windycitycassie]

[quote="wildpig"]Sorry to hear about your trouble ;(.

I have a coworker who had braces like 3 times since her teens. She did have class III. She had to have surgery this last time before bracing. I guess class III has a reputation for being nasty and hard to correct. Hard to say how much can and cant be correct since havent seen your pics and I am not an ortho, but my gut feeling is that there is only so much braces alone can do. You probably should be prepared to expect that surgery might be recommended. If it turns out that it's not needed, then you will be pleasantly surprised....[/quote]
Thanks. :) 3 times sounds horrible!

Well, the dentist I saw didn't even recommend ortho, but then again he had crooked death (but no under or overbite) so maybe not the best person to ask! Hence seeing a private ortho here in the UK.

No matter what, even if braces change the angle of the teeth, I would imagine the profile would always indicate an underbite? I'll try to get a few pics tonight. I don't have a massive one like some at least but the current end-to-end bite position isn't fun at all. I don't know how people can tolerate their front teeth touching like this. :(

[Ellebraced]

There is a lot of us 2nd timers on here. I had my overbite come back in my 20s and early 30s. A few of my teeth got crowded and because I wasn't wearing my retainers they moved. My ortho said also because wisdom teeth come in and I had a bone growth in my early 20s things just move.

When I had braces 20 years ago they didn't talk about retainers forever like they do now. I started with a 10 mm overbite 16 months ago and now barely have an overbite maybe 1-2 mm. This was done with braces and elastics. I could have got surgery but chose not to.

Good Luck!

[badbites]

I'm going through extensive treatment (non-surgical) for Class III at the moment myself (and for open bite and crossbite correction as well), with treatment estimated at 3-4 years. I will be wearing my retainers religiously when this is all over...

[marybee]

I am a second timer as well and wouldn't be if I wore my retainer. Yes, partly my fault but 30 years ago, it wasn't emphasized as much as it is today. This will be my "last rodeo" with tin on my grin because I have learned my lesson now that I am paying for them! I developed crowding on the bottom teeth (not as bad as the first time but the dentist suggested getting braces since there was more movement with each dental visit). I'm glad I am back in braces - the small difference in just 5 weeks makes me excited to see the end results!

[roxie2519]

sorry to hear that, did you wear your retainers every night?

[windycitycassie]

Thanks for the replies. :)

I only wore my retainer for two years - that's all that I was told to. Last week I saw a pirate ortho and said I would need braces for a year and then an essix retainer at night for life. He also said I should ask my nhs dentist for a referral to a maxillofacial surgeon. Will see about that later this month. :)

[roxie2519]

Oh my Dentist also said that I have to wear the retainer or the rest of my life, every night. So your teeth moved back after two years right?

[BBQ Grill]

Jeeeeeze..... For the rest of our life?..... Hmmmmm but I only sleep 4 hours a day

[windycitycassie]

The teeth didn't move back after two years - no idea how long it took, but I've been out of the retainer for like 15 years or so now. I do think they moved within five years of not wearing them, though. So, yeah you probably need to wear them forever when sleeping, or so that orthodontist said. For all I know it depends on the problem being fixed - if just crooked teeth perhaps it isn't so bad. But if you have an underbite they have to change the angle of your teeth to something rather unnatural, so I assume they want to move back.

I'll see my NHS dentist for a referral to a maxillofacial specialist to make sure of what should be done before making a decision on my next steps, though.