braces question- anyones child have a Herbst appliance??

[fairestoneofall]

i had something similar when i had braces, to try to correct my jaw. back then, it was called jasper jumpers and they were more a very heavy spring (not that they let you move your jaws that much). it was a pain because my cheek would get caught. they did hurt, but you get used to it. and i even made it through freshman speech in college!

i wore those, plus a wire across the roof of my mouth and a night time head gear.

after all of that, i still ended up having upper jaw surgery. so, if your kids can avoid surgery, it's a good thing!

 

[Peanut Giggleface]

I had this appliance about 12 years ago as an adult because my lower jaw was back further than it should have been. I don't remember it being too painful, but it did make a mess of my ability to chew. I had it on for a year and when it came off, my jaw was where it belongs. However, it didn't last. Here we are today and my jaw is back to where we started.

From what I understand about the Herbst (remember it's been more than 10 years), it stretches the ligaments holding the jawbones together. Our current orthodontist, who works on my children, told me the only permanent way to stretch the lower jawbone is surgery.

My son has a severe overbite like I do and I will not put the Herbst on him. He will have the surgery when he's about 13-14 and the results will be permanent.

 

[DopeyLvr]

I had this appliance about 12 years ago as an adult because my lower jaw was back further than it should have been. I don't remember it being too painful, but it did make a mess of my ability to chew. I had it on for a year and when it came off, my jaw was where it belongs. However, it didn't last. Here we are today and my jaw is back to where we started.

From what I understand about the Herbst (remember it's been more than 10 years), it stretches the ligaments holding the jawbones together. Our current orthodontist, who works on my children, told me the only permanent way to stretch the lower jawbone is surgery.

My son has a severe overbite like I do and I will not put the Herbst on him. He will have the surgery when he's about 13-14 and the results will be permanent.

I recently just got my Herbst off, I had it on for a year do to my underbite. It never hurt, the only time it would hurt is when I would go to open my mouth and the bars would be jammed. The Herbst replaces the head gear people use to have to wear, it's now all inside your mouth

 

[DopeyLvr]

Wondering if anyones child has had one of these Herbst appliances put in? DD has had braces for over a year and her teeth look great but apparently her jaw his misaligned due to her overbite(which has never been noticeable)

Now the ortho says she needs this Herbst appliance for her jaw.
This appliance looks painful and very large for a little mouth like hers.
She is not very happy and that was when she thought she could take it in and out of her mouth. She was beside herself when she found out its permanent for 9 months!!!

Oh and I sat there and cried forever cause I thought it would ruin my life for a year... I never even knew it was there

 

[bittybabygrower]

My daughter had an appliance like that....it was awful for the first 2 weeks...she did get sores in her mouth, but we used a new skin like substance to help it heal. But...it is much better than the alternative of surgery to correct the overbite she had...this appliance moved her jaw forward 5mm and what a difference!

As for the results being permanent...they are, it stretches the ligaments, but they should be putting it on when they are growing to move the bone while it is still pliable. I personally would not do the surgery, it is pretty brutal (I have several friends that have had it done as adults) as they break bone and reset it, then wire the mouth. Also, some insurances will not cover this as it considered cosmetic. At least the appliance is covered under whatever fee your orthodontist has set.

 

[Kellydelly]

I don't get why anyone who is an adult would have an appliance like the Herbst? Doesn't it only work if your jaw is still growing and developing? My two nieces had it when they were around 12-13 yrs old. Their profiles are very nice (me and their mom, my sis, both have weak chin profiles). I think my 10 yr old needs one but the orthodontist we go to said no and he just stuck an expander on her. He recommended jaw surgery as an adult if she had problems . I would think fixing it as a child would be much more beneficial .

 

[Mandychelle79]

This appliance was never an option for me because my jaw quit growing at the age of 8. I had the surgery to correct my bite and other then the permanently numb left side of my bottom lip and left side of my chin, all is good.

 

[DopeyLvr]

I don't get why anyone who is an adult would have an appliance like the Herbst? Doesn't it only work if your jaw is still growing and developing? My two nieces had it when they were around 12-13 yrs old. Their profiles are very nice (me and their mom, my sis, both have weak chin profiles). I think my 10 yr old needs one but the orthodontist we go to said no and he just stuck an expander on her. He recommended jaw surgery as an adult if she had problems . I would think fixing it as a child would be much more beneficial .

I actually had to wait till my jaw stopped growing. My orthodontist said because if my jaw was still growing after I got it off theres a possibility that the jaw will begin to move back again. I would have much rather had it on as a child but they wait forever to start me with everything.