Newbie seeking advice

[Red Fox]

I'm new here, so hello everyone.

I'm trying to decide where to go to get my braces and I'm very unsure at this point. I have a regular dentist that does great work for me and he says I would only need to have braces on for 6 months at a cost of $3,800 approx.
This short time frame surprised me, since my upper teeth have significant crowding and I've always heard 2 years in general. Looking around on the internet I noticed Powerprox and think that may be what he is doing.
On the other hand, I went for a consultation at a local orthodontist and she said 2 years for $5,200 approx., including retainer and follow up care.

I'm inclined to go the ortho route, since she has had the extra training and the 2 years seems more realistic. On the other hand 6 months would really be nice, not to mention the lower cost.

What do you think?

[Denise]

Well clearly I'm no dentist or orthodontist - but life experience has taught me that if it seems too good to be true, it usually is. Six months sounds very nice, but the orthodontist is specialized in the kind of work you need done, so if it were me personally, I'd trust the orthodontist over the dentist.

Of course, this is your call.... I tend to err on the side of caution when it comes to anything health related. I chose to visit an oral surgeon to have the two necessary teeth I needed removed for my orthodontic treatment taken out, rather than having my dentist do it too. I've heard too many scary stories about botched tooth pulling by dentists resulting in people having to go to a surgeon to have the rest of their tooth dug out. *shudders* Regardless, go with what your gut tells you is the most reliable and safest route.

Good luck!

[Phantom Muse]

I agree with Denise! I am using Invisalign for my treatment and my dentist - I trust him VERY much - offered to do it for $2300, while the two orthos I visited both were charging around $5000. I went with one of the orthos because even though my predicted Invisalign treatment is not too long, my dentist made it clear that the work would be cosmetic only (moving only the crowded teeth and nothing else) and my smile would look good, but he would not be able to address other issues if they arose, AND he would not be able to do any fine-tuning if I wanted more done after my initial trays were completed. Fortunately, he was up-front about that when I saw him for the consult.

Things are progressing fine, and it is possible that I won't need much more work after the initial trays, but even so, I am happy to have paid the extra to insure that I will be taken care of if needed.

It's a personal call, and I know there are many people who are happy with their dentist's work, so consider your own comfort level and go from there. It sounds as if you already have a good idea of what might be best for you. Good luck!

[Red Fox]

Thanks for the reply Denise. Yeah, I know what you mean about things being too good to be true. I definitely agree, the extra specialization the Orthodontist has makes her seem like the best choice.

The main thing that makes me even consider my dentist is his skill set. He seems really proficient at what he does. In fact, he just pulled out one of my upper wisdom teeth about a week ago. The way my jaw opens allows very little room to work (effectively brushing my wisdom teeth is basically impossible since brush heads are too large) and the tooth was partially broken already, yet the procedure went flawlessly and was completed in a very short time. I didn't experience any pain during the removal and very little residual pain.

[Red Fox]

Ok, looks like 2 votes for the Orthodontist. Thanks Phantom. Glad your Invisalign is working well for you. It's good you have a dentist who is so up front about things like that.

[Amolia]

I was told 6 months too, but it's already been 6 months and I probably won't get them off until 3-4 more months. I will miss my braces LOL :P

[Sunny]

I totally agree with the above comments and recommend you seek treatment with an orthodontist Red Fox. Maybe seek the advice of two or three ortho's and you can ask them if there's any reason why your dentist would recommend only a 6 month treatment length?

Alignment only issues can be sorted in six months, but this doesn't leave time to work on the bite or other horizontal placement issues.

Good luck researching who's the best person to treat you and here's to your treatment running smoothly!

[Anny]

I guess it depends - has your dentist been doing braces work for a long time? Do you regularly see braced people when you go in? Does he have before/after pictures? Did he sit down and explain why it would be so much faster and cheaper compared to everyone else? I'm with everyone else who says six months sounds *way* too fast but I don't even play a doctor on-line so who knows?

[Red Fox]

Sunny - So basically you're saying 6 months probably equals looking straight, but not really being aligned properly. That makes sense when I think about it and makes me even less inclined to go the 6 month route, since I generally believe in doing things right the first time and not cutting corners.

Anny - A lot of good questions. I'm not sure if he has done braces a long time. I haven't noticed anyone with braces before and no, I haven't seen before and after. He didn't tell me why it would be so much faster. In my own defense I think I was so stunned at the "6 months" when he told me, I didn't think to ask anything else. I'm going to try and stop in to ask some more questions, I'm also going to visit another Orthodontist or two when I get the chance so I can compare what everyone is saying.

Thanks again everyone for taking the time to reply. Your replies are helping me sort through all of this so I can make an informed decision and for that I am very grateful.

[lauralea]

It's important to do your research, and ask questions before going through with treatment. Look forward to hearing your decision .

[annabella]

You can also go for another consult and you can even tell them what treatment the others told you. It is really important that you compare apples to apples.
Good luck