Orthodontic Appliances?

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-06-2006
Orthodontic Appliances?
6
Thu, 03-16-2006 - 10:24am

Okay, DD's orthodontia has been paid off and it's time for round two with younger DS. I took him for his consultation yesterday, and wonder if anybody has any experience with an appliance called a MARA?

It looks hefty -- like it's going to rip the insides of his cheeks to shreds. Four stainless steel anchors are placed on four molars with little hook and eye things that will force him to bite down, chew, etc. in a position different than the one he usually does; forcing his lower jaw forward. Also, on the upper appliance, there will be a little box with a screw in it that we'll have to turn to expand his upper palate. This scares me. He has a very tiny upper jaw and there is absolutely no room for his permanent teeth, but changing the size and shape of his jaw from the one God gaves him seems like it could only cause problems in later years.

The alternative is to extract a few teeth, let the remaining ones teeth settle, then put on the braces to get everything straight.

DS wants to avoid the teeth-pulling route and go with the appliance.

Anybody with any experience with the MARA out there?

Thanks,
Julie




Edited 3/16/2006 11:53 am ET by hydrangea_blue

 

 

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-20-2005
Thu, 03-16-2006 - 10:50am

I haven't had any with that particular appliance. However, I did have a retainer type thing with the screw in it to widen the upper plate. It worked pretty well. I was only sore after a visit to the OD where he would change it out to a newer, bigger one.

Good Luck!

Avatar for heartsandroses2002
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 03-16-2006 - 11:41am

Yup - except when my dds (yes both of them) had it it was called a Herbst appliance. But it did the same thing - brought thier lower jaws forward (apparently they inherited thier father's 'receding' jaw??) - LOL. There were these minute little piston-like things on either side of the mouth, where the appliance was attached to the back molars. The top part of the piston where it connected the top and bottom to each other had a little piece that stuck out and dug a little hole into my dds' inside of thier mouths. Ouch, it was like a puncture wound. We had to have them rinse with salty water constantly to keep it clean and to keep food from getting stuck in there. I even had to help them bruch thier back molars with those little toothbrushes that look like bottle brushes - it was so tedius and icky.

For the first couple of weeks it's uncomfortable (they ate lots of Tylenol/Advil) and difficult to figure out how to chew thier food. Most of thier food was soft or liquid for about 2 weeks, but then they got the hang of it, also as thier jaws moved. Each one had it in for at least a year, my older had it in for almost 2 years. My younger dd also had the expander as well, so her mouth was full all the time, sometimes food just fell out!!

On the UP side, thier jaws did come forward, though I have to admit, it wasn't as startling a difference as before! But definitely better looking. My older dd said it was incredibly freeing to move her jaw from side to side after the appliance was removed - I caught her doing it all the time, just because she finally could!

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-06-2006
Thu, 03-16-2006 - 2:42pm

You had one of those expansion appliances yourself? One of the things I'm concerned with is long-term affects (or effects, whichever word is the one to use here -- I never remember).

For instance, I grew up in the days when ODs pulled teeth and used head/neck gear. Now, some 30 years later, I have a jaw that tends to lock, sometimes so badly I can't open it all the way, and also clicks and pops pretty readily.

Have you noticed anything now, after the fact, that could be a result of the expansion appliance? Just wondering -- thanks!

Julie

 

 

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-06-2006
Thu, 03-16-2006 - 2:48pm

After reading your post, I went down to the ODs office to have another look at that thing -- the office is quite close. The MARA sounds like it's a bit different than the Herbst in that the brackets on the appliance all have rounded edges or are curved. The brackets don't actually fit together, just will make it difficult for DS to close his mouth the same way he's been doing it all his life. The little brackets will bang together, so he'll have to adjust his bite.

I was able to talk to the ortho a bit more and she will install the upper appliance first, he'll wear that for 3-4 months while it does its' expansion work, then she'll install the lower one. THAT's when the discomfort is expected to occur. With the current timing, that will happen over summer break, and that will be a good thing.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I don't think I'm looking forward to this!

Julie

 

 

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-14-2000
Thu, 03-16-2006 - 4:13pm
It sounds similar to what older ds had.
Pam
Avatar for elc11
Community Leader
Registered: 06-16-1998
Sat, 03-18-2006 - 2:35pm

My dd wore an expander and I had to turn the little key every other day as I recall. The expansion was so gradual that it did not hurt her but over time it made a huge difference. In her case her upper teeth were in almost a V shape and the expander allowed them to move into a U shape as they should have been, and then the OD could start straightening. In one of the phases she had to wear rubber bands but I don't think she ever had an appliance like the one that you described.

As for your jaw problems: have you seen your dentist about it? I never wore othodontic appliances but did develop jaw pain, clicking, even seeming to go "out of the socket" at the worst times. I was told that I clenched my jaw while sleeping and possibly at other times, without being aware of it. The condition is called bruxilism and the treatment is a clear plastic retainer that you wear while sleeping, and if the problem is really bad you would wear it during the day for a while too. These days I notice that it flares up sometimes when I am stressed so I must be clenching. I just sleep with the retainer in for a while and it resolves. The retainer looks just like the ones that my kids got following othordontia.