Serious teeth problems (pics)

[Jcma24]

Back when I was 12, I had braces put on. Shortly after, I got sick with a serious illness and was confined to home for 3 years. I've long been better thankfully but during that time, I wasn't able to care properly for my teeth and they suffered dearly for that. When I had the braces removed, my teeth were horribly stained - enamel was literally missing where the brackets used to be.

To make the teeth bearable to look at, I had 'cap' fillings put on all six of the top front teeth, but they haven't worked well. I brush, floss, use mouthwash twice every day faithfully and they stain horribly over a matter of months and fall off quite often. They are also terrible at trapping food between the teeth, and have started developing blue streaks that my dentist doesn't know how to fix (you can see it on one of my two front teeth)

Now I am in my 20s, and i'm trying to find a permanent solution. I want good teeth that I can be proud of showing. Over the years my teeth have moved back to being crooked and I still have overbite (overjet?) that is uncorrected. Ideally I would want the overbite corrected, teeth straightened, and porcelain veneers placed over all the top 6, maybe bottom 6 too that look like normal white teeth. I'm trying to figure out the best way to do that now and the best orthodontist to do it with, without breaking the bank...

What might my options be? From the pics, do you think my overbite/overjet is too serious for elastic bands with braces to correct - would surgery be the only option? Also my other major concern is that the 'cap' fillings on my front teeth will fall off if I had brackets placed on them for braces. So my only other option seems to be removing the caps and exposing the horribly pitted undersurfaces of the teeth to the brackets and the world while they are being straightened..

[Sunny]

Jcma you need to make appointments to meet with a few orthodontists. Best to maybe start with three and then if you're still undecided, see some more.

It's important to check out a variety of treatment plans, to help you make the best decision for you.

It's impossible to give any type of accurate information on this forum, due to photos not showing the true bite and there being no x-rays ... plus most of us aren't professionals. What I note from your first and second picture is your lovely profile ... wow that is so good. If these are accuraye, maybe your bite can be corrected without surgery.

Good luck with your consults!

[smylex]

If these are accuraye, maybe your bite can be corrected without surgery.

I agree with Sunny. From the looks of things, it looks like you may even be a candidate for clear aligners like Invisilign, but as she said, check with an orthodontist, first.

[mikeg]

I agree with others.. I think you can get by without surgery....