Silly gaps!

Mr S told me my gaps are closing up and I'm gradually getting closer to being ready for the operation now.

Wait a minute, haven't I heard this all before? I've been told on separate occasions first by Miss M (and then by Mr S when he took over) my operation should have been in 2006 and 2007, now it's in 2008. Hmm...

Anyway, today I had my wires changed on the top teeth and the usual ligs changed to replace the ones which have turned emerald.

I also had a powerchain put near the back of my mouth to close up some gaps (photo below).
Mr S almost forgot the powerchain, he'd put the chair up and had to put it down again!

He said next time I'll have some more molds/impressions done.
I said "Again?" and he said "Yes, they are needed to look at the new positions"
Meh! It hasn't been that long since I had them last done. Oh well..

Photos taken 31st Dec:


Bite (click image to see close-up)


Open bite (click image to see close-up)


Top (click image to see close-up)


Bottom (click image to see close-up)


Left (click image to see close-up)


Right (click image to see close-up)


Left top back (click image to see close-up)


Right top back (shows discoloured powerchain - click image to see close-up)

New set-up!

My new mold/ impression from my last appointment was brought out and I was able to see how much my teeth have changed since I first started my brace treatment.
There's a big difference!

Unfortunately I have a few top back teeth out of line that need tweaking before the operation.
Mr S told me the operation is now likely to be in the first half of next year (anytime up to June).
It keeps getting pushed back and back!
This is disappointing as I wanted the operation to be over and done with :o(

In this appointment, Mr S removed my top wire and then removed the back second molar rings on my top teeth and also the first molar ring on the top left.

He then replaced these with new tighter rings and put a new wire on my top teeth.
He also used a thinner wire to band and secure in my false tooth and to help my teeth that are out of line to move quicker into line with the rest of the teeth.

I didn't realise till after I'd left that he had criss-crossed this thinner wire along the top front teeth. It looks quite cool actually!

He also replaced my silver elastic ligatures, (apart from the top one, which is now banded up with the thin wire) and put an extra lig on my bottom central incisor which still has an in-ovation bracket.
(The ligs had turned emerald again).

NB: Photos


Bite with criss cross on top teeth (click image to see close-up)


Top


Bottom


Close up of my false tooth to show how it sits on top of my gum

The joy of molds/ impressions

I was scared about getting these impressions done as it's the first time I had molds/impressions done since having my braces on.

Mr S didn't bother removing my wires, (I thought he might do from what I'd heard from others who have had impressions done with braces on).

First he did my top jaw impressions with a small tray.
(You know the procedure by now, putty stuff is put in your mouth on a U shaped plastic tray which sits on the teeth. you then bite down hard on it and when it has hardened, it is then eased it off the teeth).

Then he repeated the process for my bottom jaw with a small tray.
He then said the small tray wasn't big enough, so repeated the top and bottom jaws with a bigger tray.
Then he did the top jaw again with the bigger sized tray as the other mold/impression wasn't quite right.

Mr S then set about removing bits of putty stuck in my braces and cleaned my mouth out with the water jet and sucker.
(My poor sensitive teeth suffered whilst he was doing this).
The nurse then handed me a dampened cloth and mirror to clean up the putty bits on my face.

This took about an hour in total.
I had a head rush when I got back up again after lying down for so long!

Ah well, I'm glad that's all over!

NB: Mr S also changed my 7 silver elastic ligs which had become discoloured and gone a weird emerald colour.

Ouch.....

In my appointment today, Mr S went a bit drastic and pulled 6 of the doors/ clips off on some of my bottom brackets and 1 of my top brackets.

This was a pretty painful process. He used a pliers type tool on the clips and had to rock them from side to side to free them from the bracket.

This caused pressure on my teeth and hurt a bit.

In using this method, one of my central incisor bottom brackets came off accidentally. He replaced this one with a normal In-ovation bracket.

During this process, I involuntarily let out a small squeak which made Mr S ask "Are you okay poppet? I heard a squeak".
That made me grin as I didn't mean for it to happen!

The doors/ clips removed were replaced with silver elastic ligatures! (ligs for short)
I'll have to ask if I can get coloured ligs now, hehe.
Hmm... the possibilities!

He decided to remove them as he was having so much difficulty with opening them to do a simple wire change.

He says he will eventually change all of my brackets so I'll have no self-ligating brackets left.

He then changed my wires and filed down my false tooth so it looks more natural next to my other top central incisor.

He said at my next appointment, I'll be having mold/impressions done and if they look okay and need no tweaking, my next appointment will be a joint clinic with Mr S and Mr O (the surgeon).

NB: Photos


Banding


Bite


Top


Bottom


Bottom2

Hygienist appointment

My appointment today was with the hygienist.
I'm now 24 years old.

I was nervous as it would be someone new and I'm used to my normal orthodontist dealing with my teeth.

It turned out to be fine and was nothing to worry about.

The hygienist was very nice and kind, she spent a lot of time cleaning up my plaque build up with a scale and polish (with the metal tools, water spray and air sucker). She even asked if I was okay while she was cleaning me up.

Since it was such a thorough clean up, I had to rinse my mouth a few times to get rid of the blood in my mouth.

After it was complete, my teeth looked and felt great! YAY!

Now let's see how long they stay all clean...

Think nice thoughts

Mr S changed both my wires.

This was very time consuming (I was lying there for nearly an hour!).
My brackets were all clogged up so Mr S spent a lot of time cleaning my brackets so the wires could be changed.

The new wires are much thicker and he filed them down a little at the back as they would hurt my gum if left as they were.

Mr S told me these are the thickest wires I will have and that I have around 4 more changes left before the big op!

He said next time the wires put in will be thinner.

I asked when the op is likely to be, he said in the second half of this year. Eek... makes me nervous to think I'll have my op this year.

He said at my appointment with the hygienist, she will clean up all my plaque which has built up on my teeth.

What a mouthful!

Today was a quick appointment

Mr S checked the progress of my teeth and filed down my back top brackets as he could see they were tearing the insides of my cheeks.

That was slightly uncomfortable as he had the filer thing, water spray and air sucker all in my mouth at the same time, plus my back teeth are sensitive so my teeth were hurting from the cold water spray.

Mr S advised me to have an appointment with the hygienist to help clean up my plaque build-up and he also showed me how to clean my brackets properly with my electric toothbrush.

Bye, bye powerchain!

Today my powerchain was finally removed! YAY!

I was so used to seeing an ugly yellow powerchain for so long I couldn't believe it when Mr S said my gaps have closed up enough for it to be removed!

He then set about the task of changing my top wire.

He had a lot of difficulty with some of my brackets and had to replace some (painful) as they were so clogged up with plaque, then he put a thin wire on my top teeth first to band them together, then put a normal wire in.

This whole appointment almost took an hour, when I finally got off the chair I nearly collapsed as I was lying down for such a long time!

Mr S told me I have 3 - 4 more wire changes then I'll be off to see Mr O at the Leicester Royal Infirmary about my operation.

NB:

Here are some photos taken on the 24th Jan.
They have macro!


Top


Bottom


Top (close-up)


Bite (open)


Bite (closed)