retainer/braces question

[mommyto3]

Does anyone know anything about the clear/invisalign looking *retainers*? Are they as good as regular metal retainers? Better? I have never seen these before today.

My daughter needs new retainers...the ones she has now do not fit right.

Also, would you every pay for braces AGAIN if you (or your childs) teeth shifted?

Thanks!

 

[ziggystardust]

I had braces when I was younger (7th grade till sophomore yr in COLLEGE). My teeth shifted afterwards b/c I had an awful doctor. I was so unhappy with the way my teeth looked in pictures that I had them put back on a few years ago. They were on a yr and half this time and my teeth are perfect.

From what I know about the invisalign ones- they cost a few grand - they are more to replace braces than retainers. And they are only for minor adjustments. If there is anything more significant there its not going to work as well. You get a series of them which you wear for months at a time. If you have more straigtening to do - you will have them on for years.

Traditional braces work faster, according to my ortho

 

[Luv'sTink]

I heard the invisalign take forever if your teeth need to be moved a lot.

 

[mmcguire]

I don't think the plastics are as good as the metal retainers, IMHO. DS13 got his braces off in Jan and got the clear plastic retainers, which are both now broken. I don't think they are durable enough for a teen boy. When the top one broke, he was sitting on the couch, and had taken it out to look at it. He was about to put it back in when I heard a pop, and it was in two pieces.

He didn't wear it as much as he was supposed to, so it certainly wasn't from overuse. He doesn't play contact sports, so it's not possible they got damaged that way, either.

 

[Alex2kMommy]

I had braces the first time at age 12. When they were removed I was given this big rubber mouth insert (called a 'tooth positioner' back in the day) to wear at night, and eventually I was told I didn't have to wear it anymore. A few months after I stopped wearing it, I could no longer fit it on my teeth (because they had moved already.)

A few years ago my dentist recommended orthodontics, which I was not looking forward to experiencing again, especially at my age! But I was having problems with my jaw popping; he said the teeth were really crowded and I'd have future problems if I didn't fix it, so I went ahead.

I asked about Invisalign, but my teeth were too out of whack for those, and I think they were far more expensive as well. (And my dental insurance would not cover them anyway.) Also, the metal works faster, and I wanted this to be over with as quickly as possible. They were removed after 20 months, and I was given a retainer to wear.

What orthodontics has learned since the 70s is that our teeth move all the time. So just because you had them straightened doesn't mean they will stay straight; they probably won't, unless you force them to (with regular wearing of a retainer or some other method.)

Also, the earlier they are straightened, the easier it is to fix them and hold them in place, which is why my DS6 is about to see an orthodontist already. (My parents were told to wait until I was 12 to get my braces.)

So I wear my retainer every night, and probably will for the rest of my life. Whatever, it's better than having braces a 3rd time!

Just as a side note, DH also had braces as a kid, and his teeth also are a little crooked today. Instead of going through braces again, he chose to have the orthodontist make him a retainer to hold the teeth in their current position to keep them from getting worse.

 

[Skatermom23]

I was also told these are mostly for adults, since they can be removed and kids have a tendency to lose them often. Also, they are only for minor adjustments.

 

[mommyto3]

OP here

My daughter needs new retainers and the ortho that we went to is going to give her the "plastic/invisalign looking" retainers, not the metal ones she has now. Since I have never seen retainers like that, I wasn't sure. Maybe I should look for another ortho that will give her the regular metal ones. (They both cost the same)

Anyone else have experience with the plastic ones?

 

[Christine]

Both my kids have had the plastic retainers and, personally, I do not like them. It could be that I'm "old school."

I grew up with the full metal braces and when my braces came of, I had a cemented retainer put in the bottom (it was permanent) and I had a wire retain with the whole palate piece for the top.

My teeth didn't even DREAM of shifting.

These plastic retainers just slip over the top of the teeth and nothing really anchors them in. Both my kids teeth shifted a bit and I'm pissed.

 

[suzannen]

My oldest DD had the old-fashioned metal retainers and my youngest DD has the invisalign retainers. For us the invisalign has been great because I have never once had to remind DD to wear them like I did with my older one. Because they are so comfortable and she's not embarrassed with how they look, like my oldest DD was, she even willingly takes them to sleepovers. Replacement costs for them are abour $350 while the metal is around $200. And, both of my DD's teeth shifted a teeny, teeny bit - the orthodontists (2 different ones) both said that is normal and to be expected.

 

[Becky2005]

What orthodontics has learned since the 70s is that our teeth move all the time. So just because you had them straightened doesn't mean they will stay straight; they probably won't, unless you force them to (with regular wearing of a retainer or some other method.)

Also, the earlier they are straightened, the easier it is to fix them and hold them in place, which is why my DS6 is about to see an orthodontist already. (My parents were told to wait until I was 12 to get my braces.)

My DD just had her phase I braces removed, as our orthodontist sometimes does it in 2 phases depending (she still has baby teeth, so phase II is after all the baby teeth come out & adult teeth are there). Different orthodontists have different ideas on this but it WAS needed for my DD. She lost 3 baby teeth in the process of the removal since they were ready to come out (she still has 8 to go). She goes back in Monday for her retainer that she wears at night until she goes back in for Phase II which will include metal braces on both her top & bottom teeth.

Anyway at our first consultation they went over all the stuff and then said something about a permanent retainer once phase II is completed. I was as I had never heard of such a thing but it's because they have learned teeth can continue shifting. What they showed me was some sort of metal bar they put in behind the front teeth.

I never had braces as a kid (probably needed them but never got them), DH did and so far his are fine.

 

[Straitlover]

I still ahve my braces on (age 42!), so I ahve no personal experience w/ retainers yet. I can say this, though: a friend at church just had her braces removed and got the clear retainer. I don't like it because it gets spit in it and you see all the bubbles - yuck! At least hers does. That happens to the invisialign braces, too, and that's part of the reason I decided against them.

When it comes time for my retainer, unless somehting happens to change my mind, I'll probably go w/ the old-fashioned retainer. I will get the purple sparkly one (the part that goes against the top of your mouth, you cna get it in different colors and w/ sparklly stuff in it)! Although, my ortho said I would probably end up w/ a permanent retainer on the back of my upper front teeth to kepp my gap closed. I think that would go on after wearing the regular kind for however long first, though. I'm not sure about that.

 

[Becky2005]

When it comes time for my retainer, unless somehting happens to change my mind, I'll probably go w/ the old-fashioned retainer. I will get the purple sparkly one (the part that goes against the top of your mouth, you cna get it in different colors and w/ sparklly stuff in it)! Although, my ortho said I would probably end up w/ a permanent retainer on the back of my upper front teeth to kepp my gap closed. I think that would go on after wearing the regular kind for however long first, though. I'm not sure about that.

I would think the clear ones would get yucky as you were talking about. My DS wears a mouthguard for karate and I keep thinking it's similar to the clear type ones and his is pretty gross from the short time he wears his.

I know DD told me she picked a "multi-colored sparkly with a picture of kitties" on it for her retainer. I had to go pick up her brothers from school so wasn't there when she was picking the stuff out (they told me a 2 hour appointment but really it ended up only be about an hour, so she was already done when I got back). They put a picture on the retainer so you know it's yours. Not sure how likely it would be to get it mixed up with anyone's but that's what I was told why they do it (or maybe it's just fun for the kids!). I'll see it on Monday.

 

[hlbtimes2]

I'm an adult. I had my braces taken off one year ago. The first retainer they gave me ( a temp one while I was waiting for a crown) was a somewhat flexible plastic one. It wasn't super soft, but wasnt HARD either. I wore it for a month or so. After the crown they made me a new plastic one for the top. It is super rigid. I'm very careful to wear it every night. I'm not required to wear it during the day. It has done an excelent job of holding my teeth in place. I was just at the ortho for a follow up yesterday. She was very pleased with how well things have stayed in place. I asked her if I would need to come back in for a replacement retainer, do they wear out. She said it should last me years.

As for would I pay for a child to have braces again. Probably not. The #1 reason that they would need to be redone is because a retainer wasnt wore as instructed. If they can't wear that little thing like they should I would not be willing to fork over another $6000 to refix their teeth.

 

[IwasatWDWforamonth]

OP here

My daughter needs new retainers and the ortho that we went to is going to give her the "plastic/invisalign looking" retainers, not the metal ones she has now. Since I have never seen retainers like that, I wasn't sure. Maybe I should look for another ortho that will give her the regular metal ones. (They both cost the same)

Anyone else have experience with the plastic ones?

I hate the clear plastic things. My ortho also refused to give me the hawley(metal)kind.

I hate how the plastic felt on my teeth, made my teeth and mouth feel hot and also they caused a shift in my bite every morning.
I begged the ortho to make me the hawley retainers, nope he wouldnt budge, said the plastic was better.

long story short I went to another ortho to get the hawley retainers.
some people like the clear retainers, I hated them and ended up paying double for retainers.

 

[GraysMom]

I'm currently in tray #18 (of 20) with Invisalign braces. I had metal braces when I was a senior in HS/beginning of college and wore my retainer for a few months afterwards (I also had a permanent retainer put on my top two front teeth and bottom 6 front teeth the day the braces came off). I have a LOT of cavities and unfortunately my retainer didn't fit after having some of those filled (it was a clear plastic retainer) so I stopped wearing it (no way, no how were you getting me into my horrendous ortho's chair again!).

Well, my teeth did OK for a couple of years and then they started to shift. The bottom teeth aren't too bad because of the permanent retainer, but the top teeth got all out of whack. The two that were held together with the retainer moved back towards my throat and the other teeth crowded forwards . If the top 6 teeth would have been held together from the get go, I wouldn't be in braces now .

As for cost, I only have them on the top teeth. They cost me $1000 (family discount since my brother is a dentist and he does my Invisaligns). I orginally had 20 trays (a new tray every 2 weeks), but DB wants to fine tune my teeth and make them perfect, so I'll be doing a few more impressions and a few more trays. At least DB will prescribe me a Xanax to take before my appts to ease my dental phobia.

I know I'll be getting a clear retainer when I'm done (they can make them right in the office) which I find less irritating to my mouth.

As far as cleaning them goes, I get packets of cleaner with my new trays to use every 3 or 4 days. The Invisalign brand cleaner actually smells like bleach, and it definitely makes them sparkle.

Overall, I definitely have like my Invisalign experience better than the traditional braces, although I'm sure a large part of that is being tremendously more comfortable with my dentist/ortho. I ended up with lots of cavities when the braces came off, many of which were through the sides of my teeth where the metal bands were . With Invisalign I can thoroughly brush and floss my teeth, which I couldn't with regular braces. The other nice point is that you can take your Invisalign out for an hour or two if you're going someplace where you'll be in a lot of photos (like at my other brother's wedding).

Let me know if there's anything specific I can help you with.

 

[Alex2kMommy]

Anyway at our first consultation they went over all the stuff and then said something about a permanent retainer once phase II is completed. I was as I had never heard of such a thing but it's because they have learned teeth can continue shifting. What they showed me was some sort of metal bar they put in behind the front teeth.

I have one on my lower teeth. It's actually a thin metal wire that is very stiff, but they can heat it and bend it to the curved shape they need. It is cemented to the backs of the 4 front teeth. It's a bit of a pain for flossing, but other than that it's no big deal.

On my upper teeth I wear a removable retainer. It has a metal bar across the front of the teeth, and is some sort of molded plastic for the palate piece.

 

[cme]

We looked into Invisaligns when the ortho recommeded braces for DD14. She was a candidate for Invisaligns and has been wearing them for a little over a month now (on her 3rd set of 18)...she loves them. As far as cost, the Invisaligns were $1500 cheaper than metal.