Can braces fix an uneven smile line?

[treetonrkee]

Hello, I was wondering if anyone here has gone through orthodontic procedure to fix an uneven smile line. Here is an example pic: DSC02843.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

[Zoso]

I'd suggest consulting with an orthodontist. Some improvement should be possible, but how much will depend whether the issue is purely dental (how the teeth have grown in) or whether there is an underlying cant in the jaw bones.

[Janesays]

my sister had the same thing... didn't quite need braces but decided to go with it anyways. The orthodontist treated hunrdreds of patients and had a precise game plan that included rubber bands, archwire, etc. and fixed her up with metal braces in about 18 months.

You have to find a really good ortho.... good luck

[HeadJam]

I'm doing the same thing with my ortho (and correcting some bite issues) so I can't wait to have the perfect smile I wanted after the first time in braces. Farking doc who screwed up the first time! This one is great though, he said he can fix it all in about 15 months

-HeadJam

[treetonrkee]

Thanks for all the answers everyone. I decided to go ask the orthodontist and they were very honest with me. First they told me that this sort of problem could be easily corrected with jaw surgery. I have no medical insurance and currently a college student so I ruled that out. Then they told that they believe they can fix it by using something called orthodontic TADs as anchorage devices. They told me that it was something new to them and in order to move my teeth they needed powerful anchorage. I researched this online and found out that some people who had orthodontist tell them that their bite issues could only be corrected with jaw surgery were able to go to a different orthodontist who used TADs and was able to get the same results as oral surgery would have achieved. I went ahead and decided to go with their plan. It cost about $5500 total so not too bad. I had braces put in summer of 08. For months i just had regular braces on while my orthodontist planned for the TAD implants. He said that normally he could put them in himself, but cause of some of the position of my teeth, he recommended me to an oral surgeon to do it. Originally they were gonna put one at my top left and one at my bottom right, but after they consulted they added a total of 4. They only charged me for 2 implants however The implants would have been free at the orthodontist but it cost 600 at the oral surgeon. The procedure takes only like twenty minutes and is suppose to be painless, but it felt like someone punched me in the mouth. The TADs were put in a few weeks ago and now they finally chained my braces to them to start shifting my teeth around. They also put in a TPA bar after i got the TADs put in which makes it really hard to eat They estimated the whole treatment would take 1.5-2 years so im hoping that ill be done at the end of this year.

Ive attached some recent images of my braces and a pic of my two bottom screws in case you guys haven't heard of them.

Here is a regular picture of my teeth with braces: IMG_0513.jpg picture by treetornkee - Photobucket

Here is a picture of the bottom TAD implants:
IMG_0510.jpg picture by treetornkee - Photobucket

And here is an article to someone who a similar issue with me and her teeth were straightened out with TADs in just 4 months: http://www.proseorthodontics.com/Dr_newsletter_2008.pdf

Over the next few months I will post my progress pics. I don't expect too much improvement the first month but on my next appointment they are gonna start to really tighten things and put me on rubber bands as well.

I think TAD implants are really gonna change orthodontics and eliminate the need for jaw surgery in most cases. I consulted with a few orthodontist and only the highly rated office which i go to knew about them and used them before. If JAW surgery is out of the option for you it might be worthwhile to ask your orthodontist if they are familiar with TADs.

[Zoso]

You don't get exactly the same results, because all you are moving is teeth not bone. However, the final aesthetic can, in certain cases, be much the same, and my guess is this is possible in yours.

What is less clear is the long-term stability when a purely dental approach like this is taken to what is at least partially a skeletal issue. I am not sure whether TADs have been in sufficiently wide-spread use for a sufficiently long period of time for the long-term stability really to be understood. So all we can do is wait and see, and hope for the very best

Good luck with your treatment, and I hope your results are indeed as great as it seems they could be, and that they do indeed turn out to be stable.

[treetonrkee]

Hello, its been a few months since ive had my TADs in and I just wanted to show some progress pics

Before: DSC02848.jpg picture by treetornkee - Photobucket

Right after TAD implants: IMG_0513.jpg picture by treetornkee - Photobucket

And this is current progress after a few months: IMG_0600.jpg picture by treetornkee - Photobucket

I didn't realize how much progress has been made until I actually took photos and compared. I think the bottom row has progressed significantly, the top has noticeable improvement but still needs a lot of movement. Ive only had the TAD bands tightened twice so far since my appointments are pretty far apart. They are gonna start bringing me in every few weeks now though to tighten them more often. Usually I can only feel a strong pull on them for a few days. They are also only using bands for me rather than stronger pulling devices like metal springs and such. The place is pretty high class compared to other orthodontist so they seemed to be very concerned about patient comfort. I will continue to update as time passes.

[Sunny]

Ghee your teeth look nice treetornkee!

It's great you have an ortho you feel so comfortable with.

Good luck with the remainder of your treatment!