Ortho wants teeth extractions

[wannagotodisney]

My DD is 13 and goes back to the ortho next month. He is waiting until all her baby teeth are out. He says if the last 2 don't come out on their own, he'll remove them, but figures in the next 6 months or so we'll be ready to move ahead. I figure, why rush it? Her teeth have straightened out a bit since she started going 3 years ago. They were extremely crooked with the adult teeth coming in in front of her baby teeth, but he still stuck to his guns and said I should let things progress on their own. I think by waiting, her braces will be less traumatic -- I hope anyways! But she should need quite a bit less work than she would have if we would have started 3 years ago!

 

[Belle5]

As a mom who is finishing up with my fourth kid having braces--ask a different orthodontist--get a different answer.

The ortho I was happiest with was the one who didn't even want to start my son (now 21) when I took him in at 12--he said bring him back when he's 14 and all his baby teeth are gone.

This is wierd..DS (16) just got his braces off. A year or two ago, I told his ortho that my wisdom teeth coming in made my teeth shift after my braces came off. He argued and argued with me that this HUGE study just came out saying that wisdom teeth have nothing to do with teeth shifting after braces. The study concluded that teeth just shift with age--wisdom teeth or no wisdom teeth. Here is the wierd part...he tells DS for the past two visits that he needs to have his wisdom teeth out so that his teeth won't shift. Go figure...

 

[LisaNJ25]

As a mom who is finishing up with my fourth kid having braces--ask a different orthodontist--get a different answer.

The ortho I was happiest with was the one who didn't even want to start my son (now 21) when I took him in at 12--he said bring him back when he's 14 and all his baby teeth are gone.

This is wierd..DS (16) just got his braces off. A year or two ago, I told his ortho that my wisdom teeth coming in made my teeth shift after my braces came off. He argued and argued with me that this HUGE study just came out saying that wisdom teeth have nothing to do with teeth shifting after braces. The study concluded that teeth just shift with age--wisdom teeth or no wisdom teeth. Here is the wierd part...he tells DS for the past two visits that he needs to have his wisdom teeth out so that his teeth won't shift. Go figure...

My 16 yo has to get his wisdom teeth out in December. Braces should be off october. My ortho also mentioned shifting.


My 9yo just had 5 teeth pulled. her 2 front teeth and 3 up in her gums you couldn't see. Poor girl never lost her 2 front teeth because she had 5 up there to replace them. You should of seen the size of the ones the pulled from up in her gums. They were huge. She got a palette expander and inside bumper put in last week. We dont know if her front teeth will ever come in on their own.

OP good luck. I have never dealt with the nitrous. When both kids had teeth pulled they were knocked out.

 

[mjkacmom]

Dd12 BEGGED the ortho to pull her teeth (she's a late teether, and just lost her last baby tooth, and she's almost 13). She doesn't want to still be in braces in HS! Our orthdontist prefers to wait - when I was a kid, I had lots of baby teeth pulled, and 6 adult teeth. I wouldn't worry about the gas - they've been gassing kids and adults forever.

 

[HunnyPots]

If he gets picked on, why not address the rude kids?

Of course he doesn't have room, he's only 7. He's not full grown yet. His face is not as big as it's going to be when he's 20.

Listen, they said the same nonsense to my mom when I was 9. I had 4 permanent teeth taken out, palate nonsense (torture...do you guys KNOW how much those things HURT?????), braces...

My teeth looked just the same as they did before.

And I have SCADS of room in the back of my gums. Why? Because they didn't wait for my face to grow to adult size. Nonsense. Ridiculous.

It helps them get immediate results so people are happy paying thousands for them. And by the time the kid is grown up enough to know what nonsense it was, the adults are out of the kid's healthcare aspect, and the kid probably doesn't tell the parent b/c what's the point? I know I didn't. My mom paid the earth, and she did so b/c the ortho scared her and b/c my dad was a jerk who made her do EVERYTHING with the fear of custody battle hanging over her, and what would be the point of making her feel bad for treating my small face and jaw as though it was adult size?


OP, I know that if DS faces something like that, I'm waiting. If kids tease, I'll address the rude kids and their parents. I was teased a lot b/c I was very shy...I dealt with it. Until one time I had enough, and I told on the girl...she was suspended for what she was doing (verbal teasing and being physical) for a couple days, and she NEVER came near me, nor spoke to me, again. I wish I had told on all the others, too. Rude kids will be rude unless they are taught to not be, and altering our childrens' appearances so that rude people won't have anything to be rude about is NOT the way to do it, IMO.


(man do I dislike orthodontia...)

(I also have a child who lost one baby tooth at 6 months old, then had to have two baby teeth extracted at 2 years old, and I know what it's like to see big gaps where teeth should be, and it hurt...DS is 5 now and is finally noticing the gaps where his canines were, and it bugs him, and I can't wait for his permanent teeth to grow in. I just can't see pulling them on purpose as a child...let them make the decision, and pay for their decision, about their teeth once they are adult.)

Great post and I agree with you 100%!
I think the whole trend of early orthodontia is ridiculous. The kids who go through this end up with the same straight teeth as those who wait till they're 12 or 13 or whatever to start treatment. The only difference is these kids spend most of their childhood with some sort of appliance in their mouth.

When my son was about 10, the dentist started in with all the work he was going to need (including extractions) because his teeth were so large and his jaw was so small. I asked him point blank, "do you really think he's not going to grow any more? He's a 65 pound TEN YEAR OLD!". Dentist just sort of stared at me like he'd never had anyone question him before.
Needless to say, we did not get any teeth pulled and did not "expand" his palate. He did get braces at 12 and off at 14 to correct his overbite. Very simple and his teeth are gorgeous now at age 18 in his no longer small jaw!

 

[dyna]

DD's dental an ortho history At age 2 DD fell knocked out 2 front teeth. At age 3 DD was still only saying a few words that only DH an I could understand. We started her in Speech Therapy. Finally at age 7 a new speech therapist recommended taking DD to see ortho. DD still had no front teeth ortho put a appliance in DD's mouth to give tounge something to hit on an it was going to help DD's pilot move down as it was VERY VERY HIGH the poor kids tongue was hitting no place in her mouth where it should. NO WONDER SPEECH was not improving.

From age 7 to 10 not much happened teeth was not ready the ortho kept checking the appliance an speech was slowly improving as mouth was improving with the appliance.

At 10 yrs old DD was sent to have gum cut away from her 2 front teeth to expose them so they would come in Dentist that did that said that wass the toughest meat he'd ever cut.

At age 11 DD was sent to another dentist oral surgeon best I remember all of her baby teeth was pulled at once except for the 2 front teeth she lost when 2 yrs old. Xrays had been taken the permnament teeth was there an looked ready to pop thru.

At age 13 DD was sent back to oral surgeon she had not cut her permnament teeth an has lived the past 2 yrs with 2 front teeth. This time she had the gums cut away from all her teeth except the 2 front teeth to expose them an supposedly they would come on in. The thought of the pain of having all the gums cut away horrified me. DD was given gas an after surgery sent home with pain killers. On way home DD ate a BIG MAC the next day while babysitting she ate a whole 1 lb bag of 1 inch pretzel rods NEVER EVER TOOK any of her pain pills. This is when I determined DD does not feel pain like most of us esp not in the mouth. DD now has no appliance or anything in mouth there is nothing left to attach it to.

Age 15 DD still has not cut her teeth even tho they was exposed below gum level she just had nubs sticking up the ortho ended up having to put very tiny much shorter special made bands on DD's teeth special brackets and pulleys pulling upper teeth down an lower teeth up. It worked but she was still a long way from perfect teeth. The more her teeth improved the more her speech improved.

At 16 DD refused to see the speech therapist any longer she did not like the only speech therapist at the school the lady was over worked only worked DD in when she had time since DD was now in high school an the lady was not scheduled to visit the high school.

Sadly the day DD turned 18 she went to the ortho an demanded the braces come off I did not like it but had I been the one who went thru what DD had been thru an saw no end in sight I'd prolly have done the same thing.

DD's teeth are still straight as the day she had the braces taken off even with no retainer ever. Teeth has held in place much better than her younger sisters who was in braces 3 times an wore her retainer as instructed for at least 5 yrs.

OH an now DD with all the trouble with teeth is now past 30 so she has been without braces a long time. Her ortho said many times he'd never had a case like hers. He called other orthos an oral surgeons etc many times making sure he was doing the right thing with DD it wasn't his fault her teeth didn't grow.....

OH an in the middle of all the ortho work at about 15 DD developed TMJ her mouth would lock open we made many trips to the ortho for him to shut her mouth for her. We called him out of church an from dinner many times. Ortho always said that once DD's ortho work was done she would not have that problem anymore. She continued to have that problem till a couple months ago when her jaw finally popped an not had no TMJ problems since.

 

[purpletiger]

It is all in the reasoning on why they want to extract the teeth.

My DD 10 has been going to an ortho for almost a year now getting her ready for braces when she is about 14. He has this computer age progression for teeth and showed us exactly why 4 teeth needed to be extracted and what will happen at what stage and when we start this and that. Her 4 teeth that had to be extracted was because her permanent teeth grew in behind the baby teeth causing a lot of crowding. The permanent teeth never grew up in the correct place causing the baby teeth to fall out. So we had to extract them. Our regular dentist extracted them due to the fact they were simple extractions. She had gas and then Novocaine for numbing and did just fine. They came out rather easy due to the fact they were baby teeth. They told me it's not the same as an adult extraction. Quicker recovery and very little down time. She had them done in the AM and was eating dinner by that evening.

My advise is ask why the teeth need to be extracted and what is the next step. Good Luck.

 

[TiggerStac]

my almost 8 year old is working on phase 1 now. it is to fix his jaw. He is way overcrowed, cross bite, etc etc. He gets his expander in on Friday in 2-3weeks it will be stablized for 1-2 months. when he stablizes it he will put braces on top. having 2 teeth pulled from bottom, one next monday, one a month later. he will get spacers in there. he has to have a few other things done. braces will be on this time for 18 months. he will have braces again to fix his teeth around 11, at first he wasn't positive he would need them (when we saw him a year earlier) now he's sure.

we go to a pediatric dentist and the ortho actually comes out to her practice once a week. he is wonderful and has explained everything to me. I'm just really concerned about how uncomy he'll be with the expander! my sister in law had it around 16 years old and she said it was bad...guess i better stock up on motrin. the poor kid though his bite is really bad. his mouth is built just like my moms.

 

[kmvand1]

My daughter is 14 and in between her 1st and 2nd phase, just wearing the retainer now. She still has 4 teeth to lose. Her ortho told us not to be too concerned until they are ready to get the 2nd phase started, then she may have to have them extracted. Both of my children were late in losing teeth, and several came out at their dentist visits!

 

[Leajess99]

I've seen posts before regarding dentists and orthodontists, so I'm hoping to get some advice. My son is 10 and is in Phase 1 of orthodontic work. Had a palate expander, now just a retainer on top and then the wire on the bottom holding space. There's two bottom teeth the ortho says he wants out. I'm a little leary on two fronts. I guess I'm just naturally skeptical. First, should I trust that it must be done now, or wait until they come out on their own? And second, the dentist told me they use gas -- forget which kind -- when they do the extractions. How safe is this? Looking for those whose kids have had a similar path and can offer advice.

My oldest did not get braces until he was 13 and then he did have to have 4 teeth extracted because his mouth was so crowded. My 11 year old will be getting a full set of braces (already had a small top set to fix major teeth issue caused by teeth being knocked out very early) AFTER her 3 second molars that still need to come in come in. Our ortho tends to wait on full braces until all baby teeth are out because it makes no sense to put braces on baby teeth like another ortho here does. I would really recommend waiting until his baby teeth are out and adult ones are in before doing it.

Can you get a second opinion?? We have a new dentist from when my oldest was younger as I also value the dentist's opinion and the original dentist was all for doing unnecessary things to get more money (probably reason why so many insurance companies dropped him) but the new dentist is great at giving his recommendations. He has his own children (just younger than my middle one and one the same age as my youngest) so I feel more comfortable with his advice. I would recommend getting a second opinion for sure.

ETA: Sorry I missed your second question but when my son had his teeth extracted they did not use any gas on him.

 

[mjkacmom]

my almost 8 year old is working on phase 1 now. it is to fix his jaw. He is way overcrowed, cross bite, etc etc. He gets his expander in on Friday in 2-3weeks it will be stablized for 1-2 months. when he stablizes it he will put braces on top. having 2 teeth pulled from bottom, one next monday, one a month later. he will get spacers in there. he has to have a few other things done. braces will be on this time for 18 months. he will have braces again to fix his teeth around 11, at first he wasn't positive he would need them (when we saw him a year earlier) now he's sure.

we go to a pediatric dentist and the ortho actually comes out to her practice once a week. he is wonderful and has explained everything to me. I'm just really concerned about how uncomy he'll be with the expander! my sister in law had it around 16 years old and she said it was bad...guess i better stock up on motrin. the poor kid though his bite is really bad. his mouth is built just like my moms.

My dd got her expander at 9, and had no discomfort - I think they're starting them early because it's more effective, and less painful. My dd had bad crowding, and a crossbite, and since they did the expander, she's not going to have to have permanent teeth removed (including my wisdom teeth, I'm missing NINE!).

 

[ILuvTigger]

When I took my dd and ds to the ortho, they were 13 (ds) and 14 (dd) years old. The doctor said my daughter could start right away, but he wanted my son to wait another year, since he was still growing. He advised it is best to wait, because if you do it too early, their mouths are not developed fully, and you may need more work down the road. When the 1 year mark was up, he suggested waiting 6 more months (ds was 14 1/2 years old, had a very narrow palate, and crossbite). My son had all 4 wisdom teeth extracted 3 months ago (he is 16 now). To hear the ages of your children having this done....puts me in awe....sometimes dr just want to get paid....to the OP do what feels right to you. If you are not comfy with doing it at this time, stand your ground.

 

[TiggerStac]

My dd got her expander at 9, and had no discomfort - I think they're starting them early because it's more effective, and less painful. My dd had bad crowding, and a crossbite, and since they did the expander, she's not going to have to have permanent teeth removed (including my wisdom teeth, I'm missing NINE!).

Thank you!! I was a little worried after talking to sis in law. that was one thought I had, could be less painful as jaw is still devolping vs 16 year old.

 

[Bibbidi]

Oh, I'm sorry - i wasn't trying to make you nervous! At your son's age, it's very possible the roots are shorter and the teeth are more ready to come out (althouth I would be hesitant to take the receptionist's word - they want to make you feel comfortable no matter what - not that that's a bad thing).

We made sure that DD was MORE than comfortable because she had had a very traumatic experience at a previous dentist's office and we couldn't risk another bad visit. Hence the strong medication. All I was trying to say is that while I was nervous at first it turned out great in the end, and DD kept saying how much she liked her dentist even after all that work they did on her.

Your dd's story sounds just like my dd8. She had 3 teeth pulled due to fillings that abscessed--those were terrible because of infection/facial swelling. Then we had an ortho consult in April and he said that he wanted two more baby teeth (eye teeth) pulled because they were impeding her gums for her 4 permanent bottom middle teeth (too much crowding). Anyway, the pediatric dentist had asked us about going the valium route (she HATES dental work after those previous abscesses), but he said we'd have to do it at the hospital. She said the worst part about having those two "canines" removed was the novocaine--the teeth came out like butter.

Yesterday she just got a nance appliance and lower lingual arch placed--great orthodontist office. It took a few bribes and lots of prayer to get through those three appointments, but thankfully we're set orthodontically for about 9 months now. Even after all this difficulty--I'd say pull the teeth sooner than later. As our ortho put it we're kind of "robbing Peter to pay Paul" by removing those two teeth now, but we're hoping the new teeth won't be too large and we can avoid removing permanent teeth later. Only time will tell.

OP--it's so hard to see your child go through dental work--especially if they've had bad experiences in the past, but it seems like you've been at your practice for a while--if I were you I'd call the office and ask to speak to one of the other ortho's there that you like and get their opinion--it might just give you the piece of mind that you need. Good luck!

 

[ceecee]

Since they are baby teeth, they more than likely do need to come out and they sometimes need a little help. I would also get a second opinion. If they band baby teeth, ortodontists will usually do "Phase 1" then "Phase 2" We have several in our area where everyone needs 2 phases! Another we refer to seldom starts ortho until the teeth are in and does it one time. Consultants are free around here, I assume they are at most places.

 

[PlutoPony]

My DS12 just had 6! (yep, 6) teeth pulled last week in preparation for his braces. He did it w/ only Novacaine, no gas needed. But they did have it available if needed. My regular dentist pulled them because they were for the most part "simple extractions".

Same exact scenario here.

After watching DS for several years, the ortho wanted 6 baby teeth pulled. The adult teeth already in were showing uneven wear because of how they were squished together and that wasn't good. With the baby teeth out, the adult teeth straightened out some and didn't wear abnormally. DS still needed braces (and palate expander and herbst) but in the end no permanent teeth will need to be pulled.

Not all baby teeth fall out easily. Most of DS's were difficult to get out on their own. Once we looked at the x-rays we found out why - the roots of the baby teeth were wrapped all around the adult teeth underneath. That did NOT make it any more difficult to actually pull teeth but it did explain why the rest of his teeth were so late in coming out on their own....

Good luck!

 

[runwad]

We took our DD9 to an ortho because her pallet needed expanded. She had a tooth up there that couldn't come down. Did the expander for a year and it dropped, yes her teeth are a little crooked but nothing so bad that she'd be teased for it and we will do braces but he wanted to pull out 8 baby teeth so she could start now. I said no and we don't go to him anymore and will start looking for another ortho when more of her teeth fall out. For sure she needed the pallet expander as she has a little mouth and big teeth, but honestly if she were a kid back when I was a kid no way we'd even be thinking of doing braces. Why is it that now practically EVERY kid has braces when they didnt' when we were young? Sometimes I think it's a racket and I won't have her teeth pulled they'll come out when they're ready!! Do what you think is right OP for your kid.

 

[SusieStone]

Wow what a strong rude response to my post to what the OP asked me.

If he gets picked on, why not address the rude kids? It is not my place legally or socailly to address rude kids.

Of course he doesn't have room, he's only 7. He's not full grown yet. His face is not as big as it's going to be when he's 20.You really don't know what you are talking about with this statement.

Listen, they said the same nonsense to my mom when I was 9. I had 4 permanent teeth taken out, palate nonsense (torture...do you guys KNOW how much those things HURT?????), braces...Then you need to address you mom's torture of you with her nonsense with her and not project it onto someone else.

My teeth looked just the same as they did before.

And I have SCADS of room in the back of my gums. Why? Because they didn't wait for my face to grow to adult size. Nonsense. Ridiculous.

It helps them get immediate results so people are happy paying thousands for them. And by the time the kid is grown up enough to know what nonsense it was, the adults are out of the kid's healthcare aspect, and the kid probably doesn't tell the parent b/c what's the point? I know I didn't. My mom paid the earth, and she did so b/c the ortho scared her and b/c my dad was a jerk who made her do EVERYTHING with the fear of custody battle hanging over her, and what would be the point of making her feel bad for treating my small face and jaw as though it was adult size?


OP, I know that if DS faces something like that, I'm waiting. If kids tease, I'll address the rude kids and their parents. I was teased a lot b/c I was very shy...I dealt with it. Maybe that is why you are over compensating now.Until one time I had enough, and I told on the girl...she was suspended for what she was doing (verbal teasing and being physical) for a couple days, and she NEVER came near me, nor spoke to me, again. I wish I had told on all the others, too. Rude kids will be rude unless they are taught to not be, and altering our childrens' appearances so that rude people won't have anything to be rude about is NOT the way to do it, IMO.

My son wants to be good looking and as long as I have the cash to pay for it - I will continue to do so.

(man do I dislike orthodontia...)

(I also have a child who lost one baby tooth at 6 months old, then had to have two baby teeth extracted at 2 years old, and I know what it's like to see big gaps where teeth should be, and it hurt...DS is 5 now and is finally noticing the gaps where his canines were, and it bugs him, and I can't wait for his permanent teeth to grow in. I just can't see pulling them on purpose as a child...let them make the decision, and pay for their decision, about their teeth once they are adult.)

With that kind of logic why bother to even get cavities filled? Just let them have the rot in their mouth until they can decide if they would like to take care of it or not.

Just my opinion.

 

[phillmolly]

I didn't real all the replies, but I just wanted to let you know when I was a kid I had several baby teeth and 4 adult teeth pulled (not inculding the wisdom teeth that came out when I was 17) becasue I had such a small mouth.(when I get x-rays at the dentist they have to use the kids film) I had to wear braces for about two years and then a retainer untill I was an adult. I didn't have any problems with the teeth coming out or now. If he needs them out then I would say go ahead and do it.

 

[LisaNJ25]

Age 15 DD still has not cut her teeth even tho they was exposed below gum level she just had nubs sticking up the ortho ended up having to put very tiny much shorter special made bands on DD's teeth special brackets and pulleys pulling upper teeth down an lower teeth up. It worked but she was still a long way from perfect teeth. The more her teeth improved the more her speech improved.

How bad was that? That is what my oral surgeon mentioned since we dont know if dd's 2 front teeth will come in on their own.