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Question about Overcrowding and pulling teeth


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So - ds14 is having trouble with his teeth. His very straight teeth are being pushed out of alignment and are starting to overlap. The dentist recommended an orthodontist. When I asked if perhaps they might pull some teeth and solve the problem that way, I was told in a horrified voice that "you can't do that". I'm calling around to orthodontists now. I asked one orthodontist's receptionist (or whoever answered the phone) about possible extraction of teeth and got the horrified response again that "The doctor recommends keeping teeth if at all possible." Can you tell me why? I obviously would not want ds to have dental problems down the road, but it seems like it would be so much easier and cheaper to just remove some teeth and let the teeth even out again.

 

 

We wouldn't do actually do this but dh's solution was "Hey, let's take him to the Phillipines. It would be really cheap there to have all his teeth pulled and to get him dentures!" :glare: (Dh is Filipino.)

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Jean, I'm surprised by those responses. I know when I was a teen, I had 4 permanent teeth + wisdom teeth pulled because of overcrowding. I think back then that was a common treatment. It probably depends on the cause of the crowding.

 

I did require braces in addition to having the teeth pulled.

 

I wouldn't go by what a receptionist thinks; she isn't likely to know all the options the orthodontist may suggest.

 

I will be interested in this thread: I forsee this problem in my DCs' near futures.

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I'm surprised by the responses, as well. I took ds, 11, to 3 different orthodontists and they all recommended extractions. He had 5 teeth pulled for massive overcrowding. Small mouth and lots of teeth. Now that his orthodontic work (braces/retainers) are nearly over, I can totally see the wisdom in having those teeth pulled.

 

That being said, they were baby teeth, not permanent, so perhaps that's why you got the reaction you did.

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There is a new method of orthodontia called Damen Brackets and they do absolutely recommend keeping the teeth, if possible. I don't know all the reasons why, but I think it has to do with the alignment and proper development if the jaw. If there are teeth removed, it makes the jaw realign itself and that is not always the best way to help with overcrowding.

 

My personal opinion also is to help my kiddos keep as many teeth as possible so when they get old, they have more to work with and can go longer without being toothless :lol::D

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There is a new method of orthodontia called Damen Brackets and they do absolutely recommend keeping the teeth, if possible. I don't know all the reasons why, but I think it has to do with the alignment and proper development if the jaw. If there are teeth removed, it makes the jaw realign itself and that is not always the best way to help with overcrowding.

 

My personal opinion also is to help my kiddos keep as many teeth as possible so when they get old, they have more to work with and can go longer without being toothless :lol::D

 

I had teeth pulled when I was a kid bc of overcrowding. Now my DD9 is having a similar problem. Her dentist/orthodontist (he does all of it) said they used to treat overcrowding that way, but not so much anymore. He would rather not pull teeth if possible.

 

He said the crowding looks bad now, but it will encourage her jaw to grow larger to accomodate. When she's older, he says we can use braces then to straighten things out. In the meantime, we're supposed to be extra careful with cleaning all the tight spaces.

 

I know from experience that this guy tends to be quick on the draw to recommend interventions, so when he says "wait", I definitely take his advice.

 

HTH!

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I got the same opinions from my dentist and the 2 orthodontists that we consulted. The only thing I remember is that the orthodontist we are using told us that it's always better to keep all teeth if at all possible. They used to pull teeth regularly. I had teeth pulled when I was a teen and got braces. But I guess that knowledge changed over the past 30 years. I'm glad we didn't have to have any of ds15's teeth extracted. His orthodontist said the braces will do the job of expanding the jaw to naturally make room for the teeth.

 

Ds15 has Damon braces. This is a you tube video that explains how they work.

 

BTW, my ds15's canine teeth are impacted. The orthodontist is hoping that the braces will open the spaces enough for the baby teeth to fall out and they can guide the permanent teeth in. However, if the baby teeth don't fall out on their own, they will have to be removed. He's hoping he won't have to do that though. I really, really hope we don't have to do that!

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Instead of pulling teeth today they will often use pallet expanders. This is what they did with my son. They can also push things around with head gear. I also learned that baby molars are larger than adult molars so you actually gain space when the baby ones fall out.

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I have two in braces. The thinking today is to try to keep all the permanent teeth unless the conditions warrant otherwise. I had 4 permanent pulled in the early 80's. They try not to do that anymore. There are so many appliances they can now put in the mouth to help expand, not just palate expanders. Also, the orthodontist may recommend Phase I and Phase II treatments. One of mine will have both phases. My oldest only had to do one phase. The Phase I treatment really helped my second son's mouth to expand.

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I was told when I had a root canal that they don't pull teeth because it can cause the jaw to wear away. I don't know the full details, but if I recall correctly, pulled teeth will eventually create a divot or dent in the jaw, visible on the face. Leaving the root in place keeps the jawbone healthy.

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I've seen this recommendation recently that you should never allow teeth to be extracted to help with overcrowding, so I was curious. I had teeth extracted to get braces when I was a young teen. If I hadn't, I can't imagine how my teeth could fit in my mouth now. Honestly, they don't really fit in my mouth to this day. If I had about four or six less teeth, I might be able to fit an adult sized toothbrush in there instead of having to buy the kid sized. It's hard to imagine that my jaw would have really grown to accommodate them.

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You will most likely find opinions on both side of the fence with orthodontists. I definitely prefer to keep all the teeth if possible; however, for both my jaw and my dd's jaw there was definitely no room for any further teeth. We both had 4 permanent teeth pulled before going through orthodontic work.

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Keep in mind, palate expanders are only an option if the problem is the jaw is too narrow from l. to r. They cannot be used if the jaw is too short.

 

The different braces option is intriguing and not one I'd heard of before. I'm not certain it would work with my daughter... but I will certainly ask (she has a couple of years, yet). Unfortunately, the closest ortho that does this type of work is 45 miles away.

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Dentists and Orthodontists are understandably conservative on an issue like this. I'm sure you couldn't get a dentist to tell you an orthodontist's business, or an ortho to recommend extraction over the phone or before your child has reached a certain age (baring severe overcrowding which inhibits function).

 

My 13 year old will have teeth extracted this summer. I know he'd probably need this since he was 8. I have a background of needing the same procedure and it was physically obvious to me.

 

His dentist would not commit to something like that, although when pressed he said it was possible. He said he didn't like to make predictions before a child's mouth had matured because so much can happen in the matter of a few years and they want to keep all the teeth possible. (Me, I wanted to yank early so everything else could grow in normally, but the two sets won't line up correctly.)

 

His ortho has scheduled him for extraction, but then they have to align top and bottom. My son was scheduled for extraction only because he's got all his back teeth and his jaw won't grow any further to accommodate the front ones.

 

Hope this helps a bit.

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