What if - Damon Braces (Alternate Treatment)

[ToonKid]

So yeah a few months ago I was here on the forums, pondering about what treatment should I take, whats my risk on extractions, etc.
Well now here's a question, since I chose the Traditional - 4 Bi-Extraction case, what would my mouth look like if I chose Damon?
Actually here were the deals discussed with my ortho
DAMON: Straighten Teeth
TRADITIONAL: overbite Fix, Premolar extractions, Ceramic, Chin improvement.

I know Damon will give me a straight smile but how will that work out, my extractions made my crowded teeth move in to the extraction spots like for example, my 6 front teeth were severely crowded and when the ex. was done the canines shifted in while the 4 fronts were straightened up, if no extraction were to be used in my other treatment, how will my mouth get straightened up with barely any space?
Will my mouth would have looked like this? Angled outward?
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[josie]

This is a good question to be thinking about. I didn't realise that because self-ligating braces straightened all my existing teeth, without removing any, my arch has gotten really big. I'm not entirely sure I like it! It just feels like my upper arch is too large; it is larger than my lower arch now. I don't know if I would have wanted extractions or gone ahead with those and I don't absolutely hate what my teeth are starting to look like - they are at least straight - but I hadn't realised this aspect of treatment.

[Sunny]

Self ligating brackets can not move teeth any differently to non self ligating bracket. Remember the brackets don't move teeth ... that's just a type that is made by a company. Archwires move teeth and the same archwires can be used with any type of brackets.

ToonKid ... the way your teeth finish up now, is the same way they'd finish with another bracket type as long as your ortho and the treatment plan were the same. If you needed extractions with the type of treatment plan recommended, then you'd need extractions no matter what the type of brackets were that this ortho used.

since I chose the Traditional - 4 Bi-Extraction case,

... this is not a traditional treatment. Non extraction has been the traditional treatment for quite some years!

[josie]

Yes, sorry Sunny, I didn't mean it was because of the self-ligating brackets - I mean that because teeth are less often extracted when self-ligating brackets are used (and because teeth extraction has these days come to be seen as undesirable in most cases), my arch is now v big. If teeth had been removed - as used to be the case with more conventional braces - and then an arch formed, it would be less big. Hope that makes sense.

[Sunny]

Hey Josie that's no problem ... but remember if teeth need extracting with non self ligating, they need extracting with ligating ... the brackets don't move the teeth, so it doesn't matter what type you have.

Most ortho's changed to the non extraction method when the new 'memory' archwires come into regular use quite a few years ago. Even so, many people have jaw bones that aren't big enough for the teeth they have, and extractions are the only way to get their teeth aligned.

my arch is now v big. If teeth had been removed - as used to be the case with more conventional braces - and then an arch formed, it would be less big.

Remember this due to the archwire not the brackets.

[wiredmouth]

I've been started with Damon braces on my top teeth. I have a cross-bite and an under-bite. My orthodontist referred me to an oral maxillofacial surgeon who told me that my bottom jaw is larger than the top and that he would most likely have to move my top jaw forward since I have a prominent chin already. My orthodontist was not in her office the day I had my top braces put on. Here's what I understood my top damon braces to be doing: expanding my dental arch to widen the top jaw as my teeth were also being straightened. I really wish my orthodontist would have been at the appointment. My sister was 28 when she started orthodontic treatment and she had a 'thing' on the roof of her mouth. I guess I'm nervous that I'm not getting the right treatment. grr. *panics*

[Sunny]

WM talk to your ortho about what is going to be done with your treatment.

If you're past adolescence, your bones won't adjust without surgery. If your palate needs to be expanded, you'll need surgery, as the most the archwire can do is move the teeth within the existing arch. It's amazing how much space is sometimes available in the arch, and teeth can look very different when they get moved around.

At 28 the 'thing' in the roof of your sisters mouth will have helped to move her teeth within her exisitng arch.

You state that your lower jaw is larger than your top ... this will possibly mean you'll need surgery and your ortho and surgeon can explain this to you. I have a similar situation, with my upper jaw being only slightly smaller. I chose not to have surgery and instead chose a final result that means my bite will not be correct ... but it's so much better than where I started, that I'm thrilled with the outcome.