Black Triangles?

[BracesT22]

I have black triangles on each side of the tooth next to my front teeth. Orthodontist mentioned how they can be shaved down and teeth brought together with powerchain I believe but never offered to do it? Only reading now this should happen during orthodontic treatment. I am nearing the end of my treatment and closing up gaps and using elastics for last bit of movement.

My question being; has anyone got their black triangles fixed? Who shaved down the tooth an orthodontist or dentist? Is it possible so late into treatment? Or any other information someone might have would be helpful!

Thanks! :)

[assertives]

The ortho is the one that does the shaving, and yes, you need the braces to close the gaps after shaving, so it has to happen before debanding. Bring it up to your ortho and ask for it to be done.

[djspeece]

These black triangles are often due to the shape of your teeth. Unless you have those perfectly rectangular teeth, you will end up with them. I did not want to have my teeth shaved down to minimize them (they weren't that big of a deal in the first place). The tops of some of my teeth seemed a bit wider that the width at the gumline. They were all closely approximated, and to me that was the most important thing. Best of luck to you.

[ivorynectar]

I had my teeth 'shaved' a little bit. It is called Inter Proximal Reduction. I was able to eliminate the black triangle on one side, but still have a little one on the other. There is a delicate balance between how much you can 'shave' off to improve the look, without taking off too much -- which could remove too much enamel.

One of my misconceptions at the beginning was that after braces, everyone's teeth look perfect. If you look closely, everyone has teeth that are shaped differently, tiny gaps or black triangles. Once I had braces, I was looking at people's teeth very closely. Those minor 'imperfections' in your teeth when you are done with treatment? Nobody but you will notice them.

[Monique85]

Hi! I am new to the forum, first time in braces at 35yo. I am 19months in and my Ortho mentioned that we will talk about removing the braces at my next visit (in 3 more weeks) if everything looks good. But I have notice black triangles in front teeth and incisors. I saw one of his partners and asked her about them months ago, home girl snapped at me and said you can ask your dentist about that!! 😳 so I haven’t mentioned it since. I am now seeing the Ortho who owns the practice (i feel comfortable with him, and he is kind) and he actually did Ipr on my bottoms teeth. I am a little apprehensive to ask him about the large black triangles in the front teeth because of the last interaction, but I do not want to finish and still disappointed. I have large triangular shaped teeth in the front and read that this can be the cause of the black triangles…What should I do!? This is a great practice but even if I call they are like Fort Knox! The ladies at the front let’s nothing get to the back team. 😕

[djspeece]

It's hard to be completely objective when it comes to your own appearance, but you may be making too big of a deal about it. As I mentioned above, black triangles are largely due to the shape of your teeth, and since very few of us have perfectly shaped "chicklet" teeth, black triangles seem inevitable, at least to some degree. I elected just to live with them, as they really were not a huge deal when I was being honest with myself, and there really was not too much the orthodontist could do, save for shaving the sides of the teeth --which for me did not seem like a good idea. A cosmetic dentist may be able to use some "filler" (I forget the technical term) on the gaps, or even suggest veneers.
So -- I'd suggest that you calmly ask your orthopod about the black triangles, and what treatment options might be available in the dental community. You might be coming across as too aggressive, and they are getting defensive. It would be better if they would let you know up front about black triangles when you start treatment, because most of us naively expect "perfect" teeth after braces, just like the advertisement they have displayed in their offices. I don't think your basic options are: (1) ignore it for a while and see how annoying they really are after 6 months of being brace-free or (2) consult with a cosmetic dentist. In any event, congrats on reaching the end zone, and best of luck to you!