too many options: ceramic vs damon vs AOO's/damons

[40yrold]

I went to 2 orthodontists today- 1 told me pull 4 teeth and do ceramics for 1.5yr with likely bone posts or something like that to anchor the rubber bands to; next one initially said that and then changed his mind and said damons with 1.5-2 yrs, no extractions and no bone posts; then added could do AOO/wilkiodontics (not sure I spelled that right) to speed stuff up. He said the damons are all metal and I didn't like that idea too much- he said they come with 1/2 1/2 but in his opinon there is no difference cosmentically btwn the self ligating 1/2 ceramic ones and the metal ones. I liked the first guy in that he was very nice but he seems more geared to kids and a little old fashioned- second guy is more up to date. I am torn about who to go to and which ones to get- not sure why you could do damon's without exctractions and AOO scares me a bit although I like the idea of faster treatment don't think I could take off more than 1 week of work.
Does any one have ideas about this?

[mariahfromchicago]

I think that maybe you should get another opinion. Find an orthodontist you are comfortable with.

Good luck

[Sunny]

Welcome to this forum 40yrold!

I agree that you should get another opinion or two. You will know when you find the right orthodontist and the treatment plan sounds like something you can live with.

Remember the name damon is a brand name and that the bracket is just another self ligating bracket. It takes a skilled ortho to sort teeth out using bracket braces ... and the good ones will sort them out with any brand or type of bracket.

There are many types of ceramic brackets ... so find a good ortho who is confident in the use of ceramic brackets and you should find yourself feeling good about the decision you have to make. Where I work, ceramic upper six (the front teeth) are available for all patients at no extra charge. Some patients choose all ceramic, some choose a few more ceramic for the uppers, other chose a mix of ceramic and stainless steel. The best part is, that they all work well together with a skilled orthodontist.

Bone posts are becoming more popular and can achieve amazing movement without more intrusive appliances. For most people they're pain free and easy to care for.

Extractions ... now this is a good question to ask all the ortho's you see. Some self ligating brackets state that they can do amazing things without extractions that aren't available to other brackets. This is inaccurate, because again it's about the skill of the orthodontist. Archwires move teeth, not brackets. Extractions aren't done alot by most orthodontists now, and often the extraction of one tooth, or shaving of some teeth is done instead to make small amounts of room. But, for some people, it's still considered necessary to have extractions, but I'd recommend anyone who's told this, to seek further opinions, just to be on the safe side, as once a tooth is removed, it's not going to grow back.

I don't know much about AOO, other than it does work. It's apparently quite a painful process, but it's faster, as the teeth are 'forced' to move with surgery to help them on there way. Again ... seek further advice, until you're comfortable with the treatment plan and the person offering the treatment.

Good luck!

[Zoso]

Good advice above.

Especially since extractions have been motioned by one doc, more professional opinions would be a very good idea. And please don't be afraid during these to ask as many questions as you need to, and to make sure that the orthodontists you talk to have a clear understanding of what you hope to get out of treatment. Remember that the timeframes they give are educated estimates, so don't put too much emphasis on that either.

As to PAAO, it is held to have other advantages beyond just speed - there is supposed to be reduced gum recession, less chance of root resorption, and potentially better stability of the results. However, it is obviously more expensive, there definitely is some pain involved, there would be additional risks inherent in the surgery itself, and of course you'd have a far smaller choice of orthodontists.

There's been another very recentthread about it here: http://www.bracesreview.com/forums/g...-thoughts.html

[Matthew Todd]

Where I work, ceramic upper six (the front teeth) are available for all patients at no extra charge. Some patients choose all ceramic, some choose a few more ceramic for the uppers, other chose a mix of ceramic and stainless steel. The best part is, that they all work well together with a skilled orthodontist.

Are you saying that they offer ceramic and metal on the same dental arch, together? For example, ceramic on the front 6 and metal on the bicuspids/molars? If so, I wasn't aware of that.

[Zoso]

It's actually extremely common for only the front six or eight teeth to be bonded with ceramics, and for metal brackets to be used on the teeth that are distal to that.