Missing lateral incisors?

[reenie1]

DD 11 is missing 5 permanent teeth. We could see by X-ray that other teeth were pushing on the roots of some of them and there was no way they would last long. So, last week she had the four matching ones removed and we will get braces to close the gaps. The other one we are keeping in as long as it stays (unfortunately it is not going to be long as roots are already worn away ) but they will leave a space for it and she will get an implant as an adult. This method should save us $20 - 25, 000 in implants!

I was missing 3 permanent teeth, so they pulled four to make everything match and I got braces to close the gaps.

 

[LMC]

So does he have any issues with the 12 baby teeth? My DS is missing 9 adult teeth that I know of and has only 1 wisdom tooth. I am hoping to preserve as many as I can so we have fewer implants. He still has retained the 3 front bottom ones with caps to make them look normal because they were so tiny. The dentist told me last week he doesn't know how long those will make it. ACK!

DH still has about 12 of his baby teeth, at the age of 56! It is due to a genetic defect in his family--about 1/2 of them didn't get all their adult teeth. Even the siblings who have normal teeth can pass the gene on to the next generation. It can be expensive to fix, to get implants for all of DH's missing teeth would cost the same as a new car.

 

[Tistal]

I have a molar that has no adult tooth, and I've never had any problems with it as a 20-something. My dad, who I'll let you guess how old he is if I'm in my late 20s, also has a child molar still, and he's never had any issues with his.

 

[bmraar]

My daughter is missing one too. She is 13, and has braces. The dentist is reshaping her teeth as part of the braces process; will smooth everything out, she gets the space she needs in her mouth without pulling any teeth, and it is all included in the price of the braces. No additional cost, no hassle, no pain. They basically grind down the tooth, a tiny bit at a time. Looking great!

 

[bwallace]

I didnt read all of the posts so, this may have been said.

I had a similar problem. as did a few of my paternal aunts and uncles.

both of my "baby" incisors fell out. One space never filled in, and one came in with an "adult incisor" that wasn't full size. X rays showed the empty space was never going to fill in.

The docs said we could move teeth to get spacing right, then put in implants but that was going to be a long, multi stage, more invasive process than what we chose.

Instead they pulled the small tooth and the two bottom teeth that coorespond with your incisors. i then got braces for 2 years and they moved everything inward one space and reshaped the teeth to look like the spot they were now residing in.

Aside from getting 3 teeth pulled, the process wasnt really much different than most of my friends who had braces.

best of all, you'd never know if I didnt tell you.

 

[I loveStitchnippyjon]

Also missing one incisor and the opposite one is "peg". i had that baby tooth incisor until I was a teen and when it got really loose my dentist put in a fixed bridge to replace it. I wish they had implants back in the dark ages!

 

[mickeygaga]

My daughter is also missing both of her lateral incisors. She just got her braces off and is wearing a retainer with two "fake" teeth attached. We were just quoted at the dentist for two bridges for $4000! We have wonderful dental insurance but this is considered a "preexisting conditon" so insurance will not help. I wish there was a simpler and cheaper option!

 

[bwallace]

i think the way my ortho suggested and did mine was waaaaaay simpler.

i would hope everyone gets offered that option.


to the OP- if your ortho doesnt offer the option that mine did, call Dr John Oubre in Lafayette.

 

[3boys4me]

i think the way my ortho suggested and did mine was waaaaaay simpler.

i would hope everyone gets offered that option.


to the OP- if your ortho doesnt offer the option that mine did, call Dr John Oubre in Lafayette.

I'm going to google this and see if I can find some pics of how this looks.

 

[mom_2_K'Lynn]

Just wanted to say add me to the list. I am actuallly missing 8 teeth total, all of which they realized after they pulled the baby ones out. This all happened for me when I was 12 also. I did have fake teeth in for a little while, but honestly I feel for your daughter because even if noone knows, its embarassing at that age. When I was 14 my orthodontist did pull all my teeth foreward with braces and just reshaped the teeth. This was very painless and now people don't even know I am missing them unless I tell them. It was the best thing for me, so at her age if that is a possibility I can say from experience it was one of the best things for me. Hope this helps and if you have any other questions feel free to ask!!!

Sorry for the long rant!!

 

[HermanTriplets+1]

My DD11 has this same problem -- she has no lateral on one side and a "peg lateral" on the other (a tiny tooth). Implants are the most common way to fix it, but you have to wait until your son is done growing (16-18?) The other thing they can do is to move the canines over and reshape them to look like incisors (called lateralizing the canines). It's less common but sometimes helpful in a very small mouth.
PHXscuba

We have this, too! My mother and I - however, my 4 kids all have theirs. My mother had a bridge done as a teenager (that was 60 years ago) and a transplant to replace the bridge in recent years. Me, I had a narrow mouth and my orthodontist just shifted the canines forward a bit and filed down the point a bit and you can't tell that I'm missing anything! Wondering if this gene will reappear in my grandchildren one day

 

[SaraMc]

Add me to the list too. I have my top kanine teeth still in baby teeth. The adult teeth are there, but never came down. You can't really tell unless I point it out. They are in fine shape for being 35 years old. The dentist has suggested pulling them and braces but Im not 100% sold on the idea. If they start to bother me I might.