Q&A with orthodontist Dr Anton Bass- ANSWERS BACK

[RachelMumsnet]

We're joined this week for a Q&A with specialist orthodontist Dr Anton Bass, who'll be answering your questions on all aspects of orthodontics for children, teenagers and adults. Orthodontics is a specialised field of dentistry which not only focuses on straightening teeth, but the development of the teeth, jaws and face, which all contribute to a nice smile. Dr Anton Bass is a graduate in Dentistry from Guy's Hospital, London and received his specialist Orthodontic training at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States, where he obtained a Master's degree in Clinical Orthodontics and certification by the American Board of Orthodontics. In 2001, he joined his father at Bass Orthodontics, a well established family practice, having been there for over 30 years and is amongst the first specialist Orthodontic practices in London's West End. Although he treats patients of all ages, he has particular interests in early preventative treatment, adult and 'invisible' treatment. Please send your questions to Dr Anton Bass on everything from prevention being better than cure to it never being too late for straight teeth, before 5pm on Monday 19th September and we'll be linking to his answers on 28th September.

Nickoka my understanding is that orthodontic ork would normally begin only when all the adult teeth have come through

pinkiemum see either a doctor or a dentist as both are trained to look for oral cancers - the main thing is to get it seen asap.

Hi - I had a question but wasn't sure what the correct term was but it's basically the same as Giddly's post (thank you Giddly):

"My DD aged 5 has an extended frenulum, with a very large gap between her two top baby teeth. Our dentist says it will need correcting, and she will then need orthodontic work when her adult teeth are in. There's not time scale yet for this. My question is if the frenulum is corrected early, is there any chance DD could avoid orthodontic work, or is it inevitable?"

except my daughter is 3. The dentist has so far only said it might need correcting - is this something that might right itself when the baby teeth fall out? Will she always have a big gap?

I also have a child with a frenulum problem. DS has just turned 7 and has permanent front teeth which have a noticeable gap between them. Dentist has told me that he'll probably need a frenectomy followed by braces when he's a bit older otherwise he'll end up looking like David Mellor . When would be the best time to do this (if indeed this is the best procedure, dentist is v good but is a cosmetic dentist, not an orthodontist).

I second a question asked earlier - how do you go about finding a good orthodontist?

Hi,

My DD (9) has so far had 2 junior teeth removed by the dentist as the adult teeth came up behind them and they wen't in the slightest bit wobbly. There is another one coming in the same way now. What causes this to happen? Also is it more likely she will have to have orthodontic work?

Thanks

I have two question (if that's not being too greedy!)
My dd is 14 and she had beautifully straight teeth until a year ago. at which point they started to shift and twist behind each other. Our dentist dismissed her concerns, saying "there's no such thing as perfect teeth". What do we do now? DD doesn't like watching them get progressively worse but we have been told we need a referral from a dentist to see an orthodontist.

Secondly, I had successful orthodontic treatment (including surgery) some years ago and kept things in place by wearing retainers several nights a week. However, subsequent problems with upper teeth caused me to stop wearing the upper device because removing it has caused fillings/crowns at the edge of the retainer to break off on three separate occasions! Is there anything I can do to keep the upper teeth in place if I can't wear the retainer any more? It's heartbreaking to see all that time and effort go to waste.

Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions

I currently have lingual braces but keep having problems with them - in a year a bracket has come off 4 times, a wire has snapped twice and bent once. Is this normal for this type of brace?

Also I suffer from oligodontia - how likely is this to be passed onto my dc and when is a good time to ask for an xray to find out if they also have teeth missing?

Ps when my treatment is finished will I look like this ?
Sorry I couldn't resist!

Hi there, Dr Anton Bass has been looking at your questions and wanted to respond quickly to ForWantofaNail's question (Weds eve 21.21) He says that if you haven't already, you should take your dd to the dentist asap. We'll be closing the Q&A on Monday at midday and sending a selection of your questions to Dr Bass.

Hi Dr Bass,
Do you have any advice re my 8 year old son. We've just found out that he is missing his 2 bottom front teeth - so his milk teeth there won't be pushed out. Is there anything in particular we should do - my dentist didn't seem too bothered?

My DS broke both front teeth in a Primary school playground accident, and had them rebuilt with "filling" material. He takes care of them and our dentist is fab about replacing them when broken or discoloured. He is now 16, has had braces and wears an invisible fixed retainer (a removable one would risk breaking the teeth).

Our dentist recommends minimalist treatment, and I agree re no veneers etc whilst at school, but would we get any sort of veneer on the NHS and would you ever recommend having these or to continue with replacing the fillings as needed throughout adulthood (and would that be expensive?).

His "filled" teeth had to be made slightly shorter than real teeth to help minimalise breakages, and now they are straight they do look good, but do deteriorate.

Ooooh Justine same issue as my DD

Thankyou for coming, Dr. Bass.

When I was younger the dentist referred me to the orthodontist as one of my teeth was growing in the wrong direction (i.e. sideways not straight down) - however due to hospital muck-ups with regards to my appointments, I never got it looked at. I still only have the milk tooth where the errant tooth should be, should I get this looked at now, or is it too late?

Also, my mother turned down braces for me at a young age as the dentist said it would only be cosmetic. I have a very small jaw and VERY large upper front teeth in particular, and they have overlapped considerably since my early teens. Can this be corrected now, and if so would it be available on the NHS as it's considered "cosmetic" work?

@ToothbrushThief

Ooooh Justine same issue as my DD

Hi Toothbursh - interesting that you were told it was due to illness - I wasn't ill (as far as I recall!)

Hi, my 7 yr old son lost 2 of his molars about 6 months ago. We are currently waiting to see an orthodontist. I've been told of problems with the gaps closing causing problems for his adult teeth growing through. Do you think he will need some form of brace or treatment?
Thanks

My question is the same as IcedTeaAndBuns more or less - DD (7yrs) has an open bite and so far the dentist has said see how things go as she grows. I am concerned that we are missing an opportunity to deal with this while she is young enough and may only be left with a surgical option later if things are not improving. Same dentist seemed to think this was all caused by prolonged bottle and dummy use but she didn't use a dummy and was off bottles by 16months so very unlikely a factor...doesn't give me much faith in their decision making.

Hello Dr Bass, here in South Wales we're being offered the chance for our 5 yr old to have his teeth coated with flouride varnish every six months at school. Is this really necessary, abit OTT or a good idea that we should sign up for? We clean our teeth properly at home and he does them at school too and I'm not sure about this. I appreciate it's because South Wales generally has terrible infant dental care, but I'm worried about our son then having too much flouride in his routine/ system.

Hello!
Can you answer my question? Pretty please with a cherry on top?

My five year old son fell last year and broke one of his front teeth in half. This tooth is now grey and he has had numerous gum boils over the gum above it in the last few months.

Our dentist referred him to the hospital this week and they have said that he needs to have both of his front teeth out as they are both showing signs of ongoing infection. The hospital also suggested that this would help to try and prevent damage to the adult teeth

His appointment is in a couple of weeks, and will be under general anesthetic. I have signed the consent form, but am getting more than a little nervous. Is there anything that I should know, or be aware of before or after his op? Would you reccommend this kind of treatment?

On another note - he sucks his thumb (sorry ) how important is it that we get him to stop this, like, now?

Justine- I wasn't ill either (that I can recall), but dentist said the malformation of the milk teeth was likely to be due to viral illness at the point in preg that they developed. The fact that the adult teeth were missing he didn't pass comment on.

Hello

My husband had his canine teeth removed by an arthodontist when he was 17. He has always said that he had never felt any pressure or had any prior problems. For 8 years his first molar and second molar have got
infected many times and the use of antibiotics does not help him. He still hurts a lot and can't sleep. His current dentist says that the gap created has led to this tooth's continuous infections. Also that if the infection does not go away he will have to be referred to the orthodontist and that he will have to have his infected tooth removed as well.

Is it possible that the gap is creating the infection? If he removes the other tooth won't there be a bigger gap and another infection on another tooth? My family dentist who hasn't examined my husband said that such an infection must be a result of gum disease and he should see a periodontist instead. What would you suggest?

Thanks for all your questions. We're going to be sending a selection over to Dr Bass later today and we'll be linking to his answers on 28th September from this thread.

thanks summer rain and ronshar

Dr Anton's answers are now back and you can view the full archived Q&A here:

Dr Anton Bass Q&A

I can't see a reply to my question :(

Talk about timing! Ds has had a horrible time at our horrible local orthodontic practice. I've pulled him out and will be spending ££££ on some private ortho treatment at a different practice.

Thank you for the reply - I appreciate Dr Bass giving us his time.