Hi, my partner has gone from saying she'd never endure braces to not only accepting that metal braces are the best way to fix her teeth but is actually starting to get excited about it (I never thought we'd get to this point, it took years).
We have the consultation booked. Since it's a lot of money and I want her to have the best outcome, I started researching braces and didn't realise what a minefield orthodontics is now.
I'm in the UK where, as an adult, most healthcare is free at the point of use but, for most people, dentistry is not. I only say this because when you look at dentists' websites, they are very sales-orientated, which you wouldn't get with the NHS. And they seem to heavily push things like Invisalign and “six month smiles” over traditional metal.
The orthodontist we are seeing seems to have a good reputation and is very well qualified. However, her practice, on top of Invisalign and traditional metal/ceramic braces, offers Fastbraces.
I started looking into Fastbraces and could not believe the amount of bad experiences. They claim to be a lot faster but seem to be a quick cosmetic fix and many people either end up wearing them longer or have a worse bite at the end of it. My partner's teeth are crowded and crooked (been told before that it's “moderate to severe”) and the thought of them being shifted into place in a few months doesn't sit right and I would worry about the long term health of her teeth with this option. Her dentist said in passing at a previous checkup that fastbraces could fix things in 6–8 months, surely not!
From what I've read Invisialign can be quite good but relies on patient compliance. But from my research it seems that fixed metal braces are the gold standard and are reliable, predictable and powerful in the hands of the right orthodontist.
I was starting to worry if an orthodontist who offered fastbraces would be any good but every single dentist I have looked at offers some kind of cosmetic option like “six month smiles” (which seems to be a similar approach to fastbraces).
My questions are:
- Should I be concerned that an orthodontist is offering fastbraces? Should I expect her to disclose that fastbraces are faster but purely cosmetic whereas traditional metal are far more comprehensive? From looking at websites it looks like dentists generally assume no adult is willing to don train tracks and they do the hard sell on other options. However, maybe that won't be the case in the consultation (I hope!).
- I'm curious about others' experiences when having a consultation. If we go in asking for fixed metal braces from the outset will she try pushing other options (that may be faster for them and more lucrative)? I know no one can answer that as it depends on the orthodontist but interested to hear opinions all the same. My wife has agreed fixed metal is best and I have made list of reasons why we want them and why we don't want Invisalign, ceramics or fastbraces in case they do in case it comes up.
Maybe I'm worrying about nothing but after years and years I am so close to getting her in metal braces I want to make sure it happens!
