Help with my teeth?

Yeah, my teeth are bad. My canines are oversized and on the right side they overlap past the rest of my teeth. The dentist says that my mouth is overcrowded with teeth too big for my mouth and too many of them. I really need braces, but I'm not sure how much longer my insurance will cover me (im 17, not sure if my insurence from when I was a kid will cover it). Another thing I was wondering about was recostructive surgery to basically take them out and put them back in proper order, but I'm not sure how much that would cost, or if it's even possible. Is there anyone who can help me out?

Help with my teeth?
Normally on a first visit they will do an analysis. They will then have you come back for the treatment. If you are seventeen than you may still be eligible on your parents insurance. Ask them. Many insurances will let you remain on your parents policy up until the age of twenty-four as long as you are a full-time college student. That is dental insurance not medical. If your parents don't have dental insurance through their employers or a private policy than they may want to look into getting it. However not all insurances cover ortho so have them check into it before they take out a dental insurance policy. There are many employers that offer dental benefits to young people. I know that some rest.do, as well as places like home depot, Lowe's etc. If you don't have a job than you may want to look for one that offers dental as part of their package. I would check with your parents first to see what, if any, insurance that they may have. There are some orthodontists now that take monthly payments without a down payment, so you may also want to look into this as well. Reconstructive surgery usually involves for example making the jaw smaller, or bigger, removing some teeth, etc. It does not include taking everything out and putting your teeth back in ,in proper order. Good luck.
Reply:I think braces are the way to go. If you are up to date on payments to insurance, they should cover you. Give them a call. I had them when I was 18 and fixed my overcrowding. I think reconstructive surgery will cause a lot of pain and discomfort. Go with braces,a few years and you'll have a nice smile.
Reply:Braces are your best point. Trust me, I used to have a "small mouth", and all my teeth couldn't fit. They started to overlap each other and shift back and forth and in the end before I had braces, my mouth was a tooth wreck! Before you get braces, they usually have a "surgery", in which they just take out a couple of your teeth so the other teeth have more room. Then they put on the braces. And if you worry about pain, let me honestly say they only hurt for about 4 or 5 days and the pain basically goes away. Besides, it's worth it and is the best way to go!
Reply:If you've talked to your dentist about this already, I'm sure he suggested you get braces... You're 17, so you're still young... Getting braces when you're older can cause a few problems. There is another solution though... it's usually faster and cheaper, but it's not for everyone... It's called Invisalign - the invisible way to straighten teeth. This method consists of a series of plastic trays that are custom-made to fit your teeth... They're clear and thin, therefore a lot more cosmetically appealing than traditional wire braces. So here's how it works: First you have to find a dentist that provides this service... You can look in the invisalign web site and there's a link to find an experienced invisalign provider in your area. So you go to this dentist and they're gonna talk to you about the cost, which is around 3-4 thousand (about the same price as regular braces). They'll take some impressions of your teeth with this gooey material (called impergum) and they'll take some pictures too. Then they send all these to the invisalign head quarters somewhere in california, i think. They will examine the case and create computerized models of your teeth and plan the way they want them to shift in order to straighten your smile. Then they will create custom-made aligners in the shape of your teeth and send them back to your dentist. During your next appointment at the dentist, he will give you the first couple of aligners. You wear the first set of aligners (one for the top and one for the bottom) for about 2 weeks... THey're gonna feel pretty tight when you put them on, but your teeth will slightly shift to fit the aligners. By the end of the second week, wearing the aligners should feel pretty comfortable, so you take them out and put on the second set of aligners, and the story repeats for as many aligners as they give you. This process usually takes about a year, but it may vary depending on the difficulty of the case. But like i said, invisalign is not for everyone, they have to examine and determine wether invisalign can help you. You say your teeth are pretty messed up, but you might be surprised, it's worth a try.





You mention that you're not sure about your insurance. Most PPO insurances cover orthodontics, whether it be invisalign or regular braces. You should still check with your insurance provider, or have your dentist check whether your insurance covers ortho and how much. About reconstructive surgery.... I never heard about it... and honestly I don't think it's possible..As far as I know, once you take a tooth out it's out for good, you can't put it back in. The only thing you can do is put implants, about 3,000 per tooth, but then it gets real complicated and expensive... You shouldn't take any teeth out if you don't need to, just stick to straightening them



family nanny