Braces question (inspired by the how much thread)

[casjen]

My ds is almost 8 and has an underbite. It has improved as he has gotten older but he will definitely need braces. I was reading the other thread and read "phase 1" and "Phase 2". What does all that mean? When I had braces I had them from the age of 9 - 15 (oh my teeth were horrible)

What age is a good age to go for a 1st consult? Some people have told me I'm too late and others say to wait until he has more permanent teeth (he has 6 adult teeth in the front). FWIW the dentist has said to wait while friends have scolded me for waiting.

I don't want to wait and hear "Why wasn't he here at age 8?" and I also don't want to pay for a phase 1 to then have oit fixed as he grows in a phase 2 (a bunch of people have told me their child had the same treatment twice and they wished they had just done pahse 2)

So, consult now or wait? Thanks!!

 

[McKelly]

I am curious about this as well. My DD needs braces, the dentist told me to take her to an ortho to see if they could do head gear now and "maybe" her teeth might drop in straight, as the adult teeth came in. The ortho said No, we will wait until more baby teeth fall out. So, she is 11 and still no braces (not a complaint). BUT, I do have friends that are paying twice for Phase One and Phase Two. I don't get it.............why wouldn't the ortho just wait and do it all at once. It seems like a lot of money for "maybe".

 

[pipermae]

I got braces in 6th grade and I had them until I was almost a senior in high school.

It's possible the different phases are something similar to what I had. I got braces on just my front teeth with what I remember him calling a "mora" to fix my underbite (but I Googled that term and nothing came up? It was a long time ago, I probably have the name wrong). Then after a few years I got the braces on my back teeth as well to finish up.

I wasn't allowed to get my braces until all of my baby teeth came out. Actually, during a session when they put the plaster in my mouth to make teeth models it pulled out my last one. But, you can definitely take him in now to get looked at. As long as he's not like my brother with teeth growing in sideways and having to have teeth pulled because they're too big, you can probably start some of the process now. Of course, calling an Orthodontists office and asking their opinion couldn't hurt.

I would do it as soon as the Orthodontist says it's okay to do them and get it over with. No child likes having braces, and depending on how long he has them, it could make being an awkward teenager more awkward. I lucked out and a couple of weeks before senior pictures got mine out. I would have been devastated (at that time) if I had braces in that picture.

I hope I helped some. The Budget Board is always so helpful to me, I try my best to help everyone back.

 

[pipermae]

Just found this!

Phase One treatment strives to create a better environment for the permanent teeth. Phase One treatment is often initiated to 1) prevent a problem from developing 2) intercept a developing problem, or 3) guide the growth of the jaws that support the teeth. After the permanent teeth have grown in, treatment is usually necessary to complete the work that was started in the Phase One. This completion of the earlier phase using full braces is often called Phase Two.

Here's the link to the page I found:

http://www.orthodontics.org/faqbrace.htm

 

[Leajess99]

My ds is almost 8 and has an underbite. It has improved as he has gotten older but he will definitely need braces. I was reading the other thread and read "phase 1" and "Phase 2". What does all that mean? When I had braces I had them from the age of 9 - 15 (oh my teeth were horrible)

What age is a good age to go for a 1st consult? Some people have told me I'm too late and others say to wait until he has more permanent teeth (he has 6 adult teeth in the front). FWIW the dentist has said to wait while friends have scolded me for waiting.

I don't want to wait and hear "Why wasn't he here at age 8?" and I also don't want to pay for a phase 1 to then have oit fixed as he grows in a phase 2 (a bunch of people have told me their child had the same treatment twice and they wished they had just done pahse 2)


So, consult now or wait? Thanks!!

My orthodontist has papers that recommend kids be seen by 7 but he has never said anything negative to a parent. Also, he will not place braces for the bite until the child has their permanent teeth in. My 12 year old dd did have braces at 8 due to the need to fix her front 2 teeth because they came in in a "V" shape and were causing the other teeth issues. Now she will have to have a full set of braces to fix her underbite but we are waiting on the permanent teeth. My oldest did not get his braces until he was 14 and they were only for 20 months.

Also, our orthodontist does not charge any fees unless he is actually doing something to the teeth. For the watching and check ups there are no charges. My 12 year old is hoping that Tuesday he will decide to go with braces now for her.

 

[Leajess99]

I am curious about this as well. My DD needs braces, the dentist told me to take her to an ortho to see if they could do head gear now and "maybe" her teeth might drop in straight, as the adult teeth came in. The ortho said No, we will wait until more baby teeth fall out. So, she is 11 and still no braces (not a complaint). BUT, I do have friends that are paying twice for Phase One and Phase Two. I don't get it.............why wouldn't the ortho just wait and do it all at once. It seems like a lot of money for "maybe".

I can only tell you my experience with our ortho and my dd and while she did have top braces for almost a year it was because her front teeth came in in a "v" shape due to being knocked out way too early. We have another orthodontist here that is closer that places the younger kids in braces and I have never understood that. It doesn't make sense as so many end up back in braces a couple of years down the line.

 

[bamagirl@hrt]

My son is 8 and has been in braces for 6 months now. He has a severe overbite. His treatment is in two phases. First he has braces to straighten his teeth, as his front teeth overlapped and were tilted back toward the inside of his mouth. He will wear them 9 months to a year. The second phase will have the braces off and he will wear an appliance called a bionator. Its purpose is to bring his jaw forward. He will wear it for about a year.

Our dentist is the one who recommended we have an orthodontic consultation. He said it's important to correct the bite while the bones are still growing. If you wait until 10-12 to start, you could be looking at more complicated treatment.

My son may very well have to wear braces again down the road. He has a small mouth, so crowding is an issue. He had to have four teeth pulled before the braces went on. His bite should be corrected, but that doesn't stop his permanent teeth from being too crowded down the road.

Am I excited about the idea of shelling out for braces twice? Of course not. However, I want his bite corrected without having to resort to head gear or even oral surgery. His front teeth were pitiful too when they were overlapped. It didn't take long at all with the braces to fix that!

 

[Psychodisney]

I think every case is different whether or not they do 2 phases. My DD11 has an underbite and started phase 1 last summer. He also had to fix a crossbite with an expander which he said has to happen while they are swtill growing. Unfortunately, even after a year, the underbite is still there. He's going to ake her braces off to "give her a break". Frustrating. But, he reassured me that he's not done. We'll see.

 

[cassandrap83]

My teeth were a little bit jumbled, but nothing super-severe. I had no over/under bite, and never needed a retainer or spacers, or any of that. I was never advised by my dentist that I "needed" braces. BUT, for cosmetic reasons I convinced my mom FINALLY to get me them right before I turned 15. I wore them for 13months & my teeth were perfect!

I would never deny my kids braces, and it seems very common to see 7/8yr olds running around with them.

 

[teacup princess]

Phase I braces are meant to try to align the baby teeth so that the permanent teeth come in better. Phase II may or may not be needed depending if further improvement if needed after all the teeth come in. In my daughter's case we decided to go with the two-phase braces because of her small jaw. The ortho thought it might save her from having to endure all of the teeth pulling that I had to go through as a child to make room. I'd do anything to try to prevent that.

 

[21yankees]

My odd had her phase 1 set put on last year at age 7. Her teeth were coming in right behing her baby teeth but the baby teeth weren't leaving. One of her adult teeth came in and ended up at a 45 degree angle facing the back of her mouth. She was in pain when it came to brushing her teeth and it was difficult to brush the teeth in the back. Her dentist had been preparing us for her to need braces since she was 3. She's going to turn 9 next month and there is a possibility her braces will be off at the end of this month. The change is remarkable. Not sure if she'll need phase 2 or not yet but we're preparing that she will so we have the $$ saved up (we used her orthdontic lifetime cap with this first set).


steph

 

[rbork]

Consult now or wait?
You could have it now, listen to what they recommend and then do what's right for you.
They can fix it now or later. I chose later. Heard the spiel....get him to the orthodontist...for what? phase 1 in a growing mouth? I decided against it. I couldn't even get the kid to brush his teeth let alone take care of braces. DH and I both had braces in our early 20's. There's not much they can't fix now a days just all at once or dragging it out in phases. No secret that my children would inherit crooked teeth. I knew it was coming and I did it on my own terms. I feel that it has become the norm that all children have these braces and no one lives w/ crooked teeth anymore. My children are blessed that I am able to pay for their orthodontics.
On a side note....start saving because in the end my kid's ortho bill will be over 10K. That's a few nice Disney vacations in their mouths

 

[clh2]

My DD is a graduate of the "phase 1 and phase 2" ortho programs.

The first phase, which included a palete expander for her upper teeth, and a different type of expander for the bottom teeth.

I was absolutely amazed at how quickly her teeth "moved" to the right spot after the month of palete expanding. Now - DD had most of her permanent teeth at this phase, but they didn't cement on a bracket for the remaining baby tooth. When the baby tooth fell out - they put on a bracket and pulled it right into place.

I think they did the early phase because their mouths are so soft at that time, and things "move quicker".

The first phase work was wonderful in comparison to what the ortho started with. The second phase was more for "minor adjustments", but we gave DD the choice. (It helped that my employer increased the ortho max between phase one and phase two.) DD was on the fence about this phase...we basically told her that if she wanted to do this as an adult - it would be on her dime.

She did phase 1 in 3rd grade, and phase 2 in 8-9th grade. Each phase was roughly 15-16 months.

I am SO glad we did 2 phases, and based on her mouth, crowdedness, I'm glad we started early.

 

[SILLYANDI]

I had a severe underbite and crossbite. My parents didn't start treatment until I was 11. I had every contraption known to man from age 11 through age 18 and finally had very expensive corrective surgery (including 8 weeks of having my mouth wired shut and permanent plates and screws in my jaws) because my bones were too mature to be moved by face gear, palate expander, etc. and it was ALL very painful.
Total cost- over $30,000 (did I mention the PAIN?!)

My daughter has the exact same problem (she is now seeing my orthodontist who has showed me my profiles next to hers and the similarity is scary). We had our first consultation at 6 years old, checked back every 6 months until 8 years old then started phase one with the palate expander and face gear. Within 3 months she has fully corrected the crossbite AND underbite and is now in a holding pattern waiting for all of her adult teeth to come in so they can straighten them and be done.
Total cost- about $8000 when we are done, with a little discomfort but nothing close to 8 weeks of agony.

I don't have an opinion about your case, but I know that in my daughter's case it was much easier to take her every 6 months and go the phases route.

 

[OceanAnnie]

It wouldn't hurt to go now for consultations. Make sure you get several consultations and quotes. As my child's dentist diplomatically stated, "There are many ways to get to the end result.", ie. there are different plans and different costs. You have to make the best choice for your child.

My child has a cross bite. We are lucky, it's a pretty straightforward problem. We had two consultations. One was 3x the cost of the other. The first plan was braces for a year. The second plan was as I stated 1/3 the cost and was simply using a retainer (which our dentist recommended to begin with) for 6-9 months. Since the dentist had already mentioned the retainer and the same time frame we went that route. The difference in plans was amazing! But I liked the dentist's way of looking at it, "There are different ways to get to the end result.".

Our child has been using the retainer for about 2 months and we are already pleasantly surprised at the movement. It is noticeable! We are happy with the progress.

ETA- Write out your questions before you go to a consultation. Take them with you. Often times during these type of meetings you are bombarded with new information and you are so busy processing them, you forget to ask the questions you had.

 

[LizEN]

I agree with PPs, go get the consultation. It should be free for the first one, at least that's the norm around here in No. VA. Better to know and to be interviewing orthos when you still have plenty of time to make decisions.

I also recommend you let the ortho know your preferences. I was against phase 1 and 2 and wanted to get everything done at once, if we could. I told him I would need very good reasons to do braces twice. I also told him that I didn't want to correct problems that only an x-ray could see unless he also had good long-term reasons for the correction.

I have been very happy with the answers he gave me and the plan he came up with. We started my DD on a pallette expander at 11 yrs old, it worked great. She now has springs, a set retainer below and traditional braces above. All seems to be going to plan.

I knew ALL the costs before a single piece of metal went into her mouth and had a full explanation of what our insurance would pick up.

My DS is still on the check-in every 6 months plan and then we'll decide what to do. Turns out he likely needs only a little correction but I've decided to go for it, since we have good insurance and it is WAY harder and MUCH more expensive to make corrections as an adult--which is why I just live with my crooked teeth and sore jaw.

 

[clh2]

Just tossing in another thought - as far as paying for braces:

Rarely are braces a "must have NOW" type of scenario. Somehow get your consults scheduled for in the fall, and if braces are needed, they can be started in January. we did this so we could do the "flex spending" plan at work for health care expenses. Now -to do this, you absolutely need to know how your employer handles braces in their payouts. (My employer allowed for an immediate payout of the down payment, and then the balance was paid out monthly based on the estimated treatment time - i.e. if treatment was estimated to take 18 months, everymonth your flex would only payout 1/18th of the balance.) What I am trying to say - do not assume that you will need be able to pay it off in a lump sum.

Most employers use a calendar year for this type of benefit. The main reason to do this is to use pre-tax dollars, and with the cost of braces - that is a signficant savings.

Be sure to check this out with your employer. I am amazed at how many people I know who are not taking advantage of this becaue the "paperwork is scary". Actually for phase 2, we had a debit card, and just used that for paying the ortho. It involved filling out a very simple form.

 

[mjkacmom]

Our orthodontist does one phase, another in town does two. Even though he does one phase, he starts the process before all of the baby teeth are out when there is a spacing issue. Dd13 got her palate expander when she was 10, although she didn't get braces put on until 12, and all of the braces on when she was 13.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

I also don't agree in the phase 1 and phase 2 treatment.

My son who is now 12 was told by our family dentist 4 years ago we should start treatment. I said he still has a ton of baby teeth. They wanted to do an expander and possible braces, at 8!

Sorry I don't think so. I don't have an extra 4 grand laying around for him to get braces at 8 then when his permanent teeth came in to get braces again. The dentist told me that is probably what would happen.

Now at 12, his permanent teeth are all in. He just got fitted for his expander that he'll wear for 6 months, then come the braces.

 

[crisi]

Both my kids have the same orthodonist.

My daughter will get two phases - there was a hope she'd only need phase one, but since she got the flu this year and was retainerless for a long period - then her baby teeth started dropping, I don't think that will happen. BUT, doing phase one should cut phase two time down. And solved some problems she was having with her front six teeth so she has an attractive smile going into middle school.

My son gets one phase, but started with an "appliance" - not a palate expander.

So a decent orthodonist will choose a treatment plan based on what she sees in your child's mouth.

Orthodonics has changed a lot since most of us were kids. As someone said upthread, they can always fix it later - they can fix the teeth as adults. If the budget doesn't fit two sets, it doesn't fit two sets.