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Cheers

Need advice on how to prevent chipped teeth or tooth

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Cheers
, 04-17-2010 at 04:22 PM (335 Views)
I have ceramic braces on top and metal on the bottom. The tops are contacting two brackets so I have to call my ortho ASAP. I am concerned about the impact causing a chip. Thank you newsboysgrl777 for mentioning that 'bite turbos' (speed bumps) or glue on your back molars can help the situation. Has anyone had experience with these treatments or any treatments to prevent chipping?

Thank you for your advice.


Important
P.S. To those wondering about ceramic braces and preventing chipping.

Most Orthodontists will only put ceramics on the top of the teeth and metal on the bottom. The reason why is that the ceramic material is abrasive and can cause damage.


The California Association of Orthodontists have an educational booklet.
Under the topic ceramic braces it says, "Ceramic braces on the lower teeth may cause wear on the opposing upper teeth if in contact."
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Comments

  1. Sunny's Avatar
    Cheers most ortho's will check the bite for patients who want ceramics on both archs. As long as the teeth will not come into contact with the brackets, then it's fine to have ceramic on both arches. For many people with deep bites this will never be an option, but for many with people who don't have any major bite problesm, but mostly alignment issues, ceramics on both archs work well.

    Some ortho's don't offer ceramic on lowers due to the cost to the patients, but other ortho's don't charge any extra for their ceramic brackets ... and it doesn't matter to them as long as the bite is fine.
  2. Cheers's Avatar
    Thank you for responding. Sunny I agree. The use of ceramics does depend on the bite problem. If there is no contact it would be OK. If at any time during fixing the bite problem and fixing teeth positioning there were contact then it would not be such a good idea because ceramics can be more abrasive.

    That being said metal can be a problem too. I put some wax on my 2 lower metal brackets to keep them from impacting my upper teeth. My ortho is closed on the weekend so I have to wait until tomorrow to ask what kind of solution will work. The wax I put on keeps slipping off after awhile so I am going to look for a soft mouth guard that is OK for braces today so I can hopefully sleep better tonight. I am hoping they will suggest bite turbos or glue on the back molars or just anything to make this problem go away.
    Best Regards,
    Cheers
  3. Denise's Avatar
    I have ceramics on top and bottom. At first they gave me a 'speed bump' on the back of one of my front teeth. When they took that off, they put some molar buildup on my two back teeth to prevent my bite from coming down all the way so my top teeth didn't come into contact with my bottom teeth. Now that my bite has improved greatly I don't have a speed bump, or the molar buildup anymore. If you feel your teeth coming into contact with your brackets you definitely need to call your orthodontist immediately, as this could not only cause chips in your teeth, but nerve damage in your teeth as well.