am I alone?? please help

[perfect_smile]

ok, so I've been wearing braces for 6 years or so. I do maintain good oral hygien, but apparently it wasn't good enough. Now the really hard to clean places (ie: around brackets, between teeth, etc.) have either turned yellow or brown, some places black. I know, disgusting. I'm talking about the front teeth!!! What should I do other than keep up with the brushing and flossing?

[Zoso]

Have you been having regular checkups and hygiene appointments whilst you've been in braces? A good professional cleaning ought to be able to handle any normal surface staining, even in those hard to reach nooks and crannies.

Another thing I wonder is if they've had you using any special dentifrice (toothpaste) or rinses whilst braced, since some of these can themselves cause staining.

[Stephanie]

I highly recommend you go to your dentist every 4 months while in braces... they will do the best they can while in braces and then we you get them off you can go back to every 6 months or however long you were in them...

I also recommend an electric toothbrush such as The Rotadent (the one they are giving away here in the contest). It is extremely soft on the teeth and if you hit the brackets, it is not a big deal, compared to the soniccrare.

Good luck and you are not alone! For me, i cant stand flossing, so i kno whow that goes.

[Sunny]

You write that you maintain good oral hygiene, and if you've also been having regular checks with your dentist and hygienist - once every six months is sufficient for most people, then the other consideration would be if you've changed mouthwashes. Some mouth washes do stain teeth, although this is rare.

A visit to your hygienist for a thorough cleaning, should get these stains removed if they're recent.

Good luck with continued great oral hygiene!

[Zoso]

Unless there are particular problems, most patients are fine with a six monthly call-back on check-ups and cleanings even when they are in braces.

[perfect_smile]

thank you for your answers.

I use oral-B electric tooth brush, AIM toothpaste, and ACT mouthwash.

My dentist said the black marks are more likely to be cavities than stains cause she can't get them off. (My teeth get cavities really really easily) But she said she can't do anything until the braces are removed. My ortho knows about these cavities, but she doesn't seem to be addressing them. Maybe there's still really small and she hopes to finish the treatment and then deal with them? (Cause removing all the brackets can delay the straightening treatment, and I'm already 2 years behind schedule.) But they honestly look pretty large to me, and I really don't want a root canal. I'm afraid to ask my ortho about this cause she might yell at me for getting the cavities in the first place.

[Sunny]

Perfect Smile I recommend you go back and talk to your dentist. Orthodontist's rarely deal with cavities, other than to tell you to see your dentist, so sounds like your ortho is doing what's expected.

Explain to your dentist your concerns, as if you need to have a bracket or two removed for fillings to be done, this should be able to be done quite easily and with minimal (if any) affect to your progress.

These are your front teeth, so please be proactive and find out what your best option is. Good luck!

[Zoso]

Indeed. There should be no need to remove all of the brackets if only a few teeth need to be treated, and the brackets need be off only for a day or two (maybe a little longer) depending how well you are able to coordinate appointments. If these are cavities that are visible to the naked eye, then now's the time to deal with them, not later. And, given this has happened despite you maintaining a good hygiene routine (including fluoride rinses) and having professional cleanings, you might consider asking your dentist about a professional dentifrice such as Prevident, Gel-Kam or Fluoridex (some are prescription only) and/or professional fluoride treatments.

[perfect_smile]

The problem is almost all my teeth have some size of cavity on them. Some are really small and shallow, and others look pretty big. My dentist said there's nothing she could do until all my braces are removed and that she takes an x-ray. I'm really afraid to ask my orthodontist about this because last time she removed one of my brackets due to a severely large cavity, she yelled at me for a pretty long time. I figured that if she sees the decay, what's the point of my pointing out the obvious?

Now both my orthodontist and dentist are basically not addressing these cavities. I can see them with my naked eye, and even from a distance. I'm terribly scared that when the braces get removed, I'd have teeth with black marks all over them.

[Sunny]

Perfect smile if your oral care professionals are as incompetent as you write, I don't understand why you've not changed to more professional people before now.

My issue with what you write is, why bother with orthodontic work, if your teeth are going to be in such poor condition when your treatment is finished? People who are prone to cavities can have successful orthodontic treatment, although they usually need to rinse more often with prescription mouth washes and have dental checks at least twice a year with any cavities sorted as soon as they're detected.

[perfect_smile]

I've told my mom about this, but she completely trusts the dentists. She doesn't think it's necessary to switch. My teeth were pretty good before the treatment started. I didn't do any extra brushing compared to what I have done without the braces. I guess after six years the extra plaque I didn't put the extra time in to clean off decided to eat away my teeth. All the cavities started appearing at the same time, so I wasn't even aware of this until it's too late (relatively recent). Now after 6 years of treatment, I really don't think any other orthodontist will accept my case. Besides, my mom doesn't want all the money to go down the drain. She tells me to tough it out and just brush really well now. Once the treatment is over, she believes the dentist can fill up all the cavities. My dentist is also telling me to just do my best at brushing, and that she'll address all the problems after the treatment is over. I asked her to look at the cavities not affected by the braces, and she told me they're really small and shallow so I should just brush them well cause filling them might damage the tooth more than restores it.

I'm assuming the cavities I see are wide, but are shallow (not holes yet) so both of them think it's best to wait since my brushing is keeping up. I really don't know... I always thought cavities will get worse no matter how well you brush them, and a cavity seen by the naked eye is considered large enough for immediate treatment.

My treatment is kind of almost over (8ish more months); I suppose the best way is to do my best at brushing. I really can't make any of them do anything. Suggestions?

[Sunny]

Sorry that you feel you have no options Perfect Smile. Hopefully since you're seeing your dentist regularly, all will be well and these marks are stains, and not true cavities, that can be sorted when you have your braces removed. Remember this is the responsibility of your dentist/hygienist, not your orthodontist.

We don't recommend our patients brush anymore often than they did pre braces, but we do recommend that they brush more carefully and use a small soft toothbrush (manual or electric). We also recommend using interdental brushes to brush between teeth and around brackets and most important ... use a mouth wash with fluoride twice a day. One 'extra' we request, is that the patient drink plenty of water, which has the added benefit of helping them keep well hydrated and allows the inside of the mouth to deal more easily with the braces. Plus water is great at flushing debris from between teeth and around brackets, and is great when you've been eating or drinking something with acid in it, as brushing is not recommended for 30 minutes after that. And finally we request that our patients see their dentist and hygienist once every six months.

Good luck with your bite feeling great when your treatment is over, and the appearance of your teeth being easily sorted by a good dentist.

[Zoso]

Of course, I don't pretend to be a dental professional, but I can't imagine that caries that are already visible to the patient's naked eye should be left unattended for another 8 months or so. If neither your mother, your ortho, nor your dentist are taking this seriously, then I'd suggest that you seek out another forum where there are contributing dental professionals - dentists - who might be able to offer more authoritative advice. I'd like to think I'm wrong here, and that there is nothing to worry about and 8 months more won't matter, but I fear for your teeth should I happen to be right.

[SouthernGirl]

I'm not an dentist but I suggest going back to see if you actually can wait 8 months and to see if the dentist can see if it is a cavity or not. (Your Ortho sounds like a quack)