Teenager's & Braces

[mothernature]

Is anyone able to give some good advice on teenagers dealing with brace's I have 3 teenagers who are about to have them fitted next month, 2 of them have to have 4 teeth out first, I am bothered more about this than they are, I had a bad experience with tooth extraction when I was their age, they don't seem to be bothered much and I am trying not to pass on bad vibes..but how do I help them care for the braces when they are in, I'm not sure at this stage if they are going to be able to take them out to clean them or if they are going to be perminant one's, any help would be appreciated.

mn, I am a pro at all this - 4th child now in the system!

Mine have all started out with removable braces before they got fixed ones. They are supposed to try to eat with them in but I don't think any of mine could, you get used to seeing disgusting pink things on the table but be careful when you eat out, if the brace gets wrapped in a napkin it might get left behind. If your orthodontist gives them a brace box try to make sure it comes with you.

My 3 older kids have each had to have 4 teeth out twice - first baby teeth, then second teeth - generally the premolars. They have all had it done with injection. The actual extraction is painless, the dentist has a neat gadget where he pushes and it pulls and the tooth pops out. DS2 (10) recently had his baby canines extracted, that was the worst I've seen because the root doesn't taper, but he coped fine and only put up his hand as the tooth came out and then it was done. No tears or anxiety for any of them (so try to carry on keeping yours hidden!), very little discomfort afterwards, paracetamol eases it.

If they do get fixed braces they really do have to be very careful both with brushing and what they eat - there is a little bit of cement on the front of each tooth where the fixings are attached and plaque can gather around them and leave patches of decay if they aren't cleaned very well. The orthodontist should give them a useful leaflet with illustrations of good results and bad results. Cutting down on fizzy drinks and sticky sweets as much as poss will help.

Can't think of anything else at the moment, except that my older 3's teeth are beautiful now!
HTH

JanH, thanks alot, I think I wil get some paracetamol in ready, its makes my stomach churn everytime I think about them have their teeth out, I was under anasthetic gas when mine were taken out, I can still remember lying on the sofa with a bowl at the side of me, puking up the blood and back gas, yuk...took me about a week to get over it.

also if they have the fitted "track" braces, getting plenty of mouth ulcer gel!!

One thing I can remember from my "wearing braces" days was constant mouth ulcers. I also used to get a lot of headaches for a few days after the tightening of braces, due to the pressure in the mouth. Be prepared for that.

Slinky, you mean like Bongela? I'll get some of that too, oh boy, I think its going to be fun.

Oh, yes, the fixed ones can rub - the orthodontist can give you some special wax for them to press on top of the scratchy bits.

Actual headaches, Slinky? Poor you! My kids needed paracetamol for the teeth aching when the wires are tightened but that was all.

dd2, who is 18, had a fixed retaining wire inside her bottom teeth after the treatment had finished. dd1 (21) didn't, and when her wisdom teeth started pushing up her bottom teeth went crooked again; the orthodontist is sorting her out at the moment. Your kids will probably have a whole-mouth X-ray to show if their wisdom teeth exist (DS2's don't!) and if they do then they will probably need a fixed retainer too - akthough different orthodontists have different techniques. But that's a few years down the line.

Thanks JanH, they are only just teenagers so the wisdom thing won't really matter just yet, ds1 14 only having bottom brace and ds2 & dd1 13 in Feb, having top & bottom braces.

I've had three who've had braces, one with removables and two had 'traintracks' Your orthodontist should give you info about cleaning etc. We found an electric toothbrush was much, much easier and more efficent to use. If they get ulcers the best thing I've found is Adcortyl in Orabase. It puts a skin-like covering over the ulcer and lasts longer than Bonjela, which I find stings anyway.

None of mine had to have four teeth out, just one or two, but it was very quick, as Janh describes. Ikwym about memories. I had four out myself with gas and was in bed for a week afterwards.

Al the best, take a good book for the hours you'll be spending in the waiting room!

I found the actual brace-wearing time far worse than the teeth being taken out.

I had 4 removed under G&A at the dentists - my dad dropped my friend and myself at the dentists then left us! Had to then ring my dad to pick us up and drop us home.

I remember coming round from the Gas, panicking because I hadn't done my biology homework - and dentist was trying to reassure me that it really didn't matter at this stage

I went home with my friend, then we went to the shop and got some sweets Absolutely NOTHING was going to stop me eating sweets in those days!

Are they having the teeth out under local or general anaesthetic? I had 4 teeth out under local (each side done separately) and although it didn't hurt, the worst thing by far was seeing the enormous (or so it looked then!) needle heading towards my mouth! So try to distract their attention while that's going on. HTH

(and thanks JanH, my teeth are rather beautiful aren't they!! )

Hello, dear.

nice to see two generations of the same family answering a mumsnet question

I remember when I had the 'track' braces - my lips seemed permanently chapped until my mother bought me some lip salve. Perhaps you could get that as well as the paracetemol just in case yours have the same problem.

I had removable and fixed braces when i was 12. First I had to have 8 teeth out (my mouth was too small, honest). Anyway I could never eat with removable one in, and agree with using brace box if you can as i lost mine several times. Never really had any problems with them though. The fixed one's can be a bit of a pain, especially when they are tightened, I remember being in alot of pain for several days after ahving mine done. I couldn't eat chewing gum, crusty bread or anything that was hard to chew, toffee totally out of the question. I broke some of the wires on mine and the dentist wasn't impressed.
Tell your kids from me, it's worth it in the end but only if you do as you are told. I had to have another removable brace after the fixed one, just to help the teeth keep their new position, but i never worn it and now my teeth have moved back a bit.

i had braces between the ages of 16 and 18. i had to have 4 teeth out 1st which is a bit painful but nothing major. but the fixed braces really hurt. it make your mouth feel as if its being pulled in all directions, i had headaches as well, so until they settle down (2days ish) then your kids could be in a bit of pain. the wax they give u to put on the scracthy bits was pretty useless, so yes, get bonjela in. they wont be able to eat nuts, chewy sweets or crusty breads as they get caught in the wires and can snap them.
easiest way to keep fixed braces clean was to use a baby toothbrush to clean around the fixings.

i hated having braces, and shortly after having them removed some of my teeth moved back so still have a wonky smile.

I can't help re tooth extraction but completely agree about Adcortyl which IMO is far better than Bonjela. More like a sticky paste which covers the ulcer. Also suggest lots of wax and paracetomol for when it is painful. usually when they have been tightened. The electric toothbrush seems to work well and our dentist recommended using a head with just a few bristles (interdental one?). My DD has had two removeables and was brilliant with the first one. Never removed it even for eating. The second - a bionator- she found much more difficult and ended with it being thrown away in a napkin at a cafe. Luckily she was ready to move onto train tracks or it would have been another fortune.

eli, is a bionator the one that stretches the palate? If so ds2 has had one of those, it nearly got lost in cafes several times and was very wobbly by the end but just made it through, like yours!

misdee, maybe the wax is better now? dd1 was given two little flat plastic boxes of it last time (2 weeks ago) and it works for her.

mn, as you can tell from what misdee and nutcracker have said, retainers are very important! Mine have all had a removable one to begin with, to be worn all the time initially and then only at night; immediately after having the tramtracks out they seem to be a doddle, but then the kids get a bit blase. dd2 now has a fixed one and I think ds1 does too but I'm not sure now - will check after school!

DDs bionator had a top and a bottom bit and was designed to move her bottom jaw forward. I t would only fit if she moved her jaw to the correct position so her teeth slotted in. Horrible thing - I'm glad it's gone. nagging kids about wearing their braces is definitely not quality time.

I so envy the parents of children whose second teeth come through the right size and in the right place! (

i had little plastic cases of the wax, i think i just had silly braces that were designed to hurt me.
i did wear my retainer till i was told to stop, but it was a nightmare to eat with. i was initially told i'd need the traintracks till i was 19, but they removed just after my 18th, so maybe they just removed them too early. despite the hassles of having braces, i would love a perfect smile so have thought about getting braces fitted again. anyone have any idea how much it costs?

Thanks so much for you information, it has put my mind at ease, and I feel if i have any query's in the future regarding the same, then I will know who to call on. thanks again XX

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