Braces for my Daughter

Kerryspirit

Hi,

I need some information and I hope someone can help me

My daughter is 6 and has been sucking her TWO thumbs for the last years and unfortunately still does.
Fact is that her teeth are all over the place.
Now I know it is too early (is it?) to think about braces but I am dreading it!

Can anybody tell me how much I have to prepare myself to spend for it, costwise and with which age you start with them?
And what about medical card? Is there ANY relief on it?

Thanks guys and I will be sitting down for the answers

Mr. Presentable

It is regarded as cosmetic work here, so no help. There is a little tax relief. Costs vary from patient to patient, and the baby teeth should be at least mostly gone before the work - not least because the adult teeth may come through differently

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Orthodontics is tax deductible at 20% for sure. If she can stop sucking her thumb things may improve maybe get that foul tasting varnish for her fingers? If she need braces cost will be between 1000-5000 euro depending on severity, time, need for extractions etc.

Oral Surgeon

If her malocclusion is severe enough or includes such things as an unerupted adult tooth- she may be entitled to free treatment with the HSE. Best to get her assessed in a health board clinic and on to a HSE orthodontist from there and maybe she qualifies but she's way too early for that at this stage...

Stop the thumb-sucking....

Good luck,
OS

Kerryspirit

But HOW how do i stop the thumb sucking (two fingers actually) i tried everything EVERYTHING!
:eek:

Mr. Presentable

Identify when she does it, that may tell you why. Boredom? Loneliness? Tiredness?

Get her hands busy doing something else. Puzzles, cubes, even a Nintendo. Just to break the pattern.

Kerryspirit

I indentified that already
Whenever she falls asleep - wupp! inside the thumbs...
Mostly for falling asleep or when she is tired.....
I tried then everything, like the gel u put on, chilly, mustard (she loved it lol) tying them togehter with plaster...
and the mouth/teeth look horrible....

well she wants a nintendo for her birthday maybe that is an idea...but not in bed i guess lol

btkm8unsl0w5r4

You can get thumb sucking appliances from a dentist that stop the fingers fitting in at night, there pretty simple.

Kerryspirit

Really??? I never heard of them - you can buy them there and use them?
OH MY hopefully that is the solution!!! ;-)

Oral Surgeon

You would need to go to a dentist to get one, they are custom made devices but look a little cruel....

kkth0360

Fixed appliances like that one above can work well. Some versions, called tongue spurs, can also be used if necessary to correct some (not all) of the bite issues caused by the habit, by "retraining" the tongue which sometimes adopts an abnormal position in response to these bite issues.

You could also try using simpler methods like putting socks or a mittens on her hands at night (held in place with skin-friendly tape) - a paediatric dentist colleague of mine recommends using the socks the child has worn that day, as an extra deterrant!

Another trick worth trying is to wrap a towel or similar around her arm at elbow level, not too tightly, and again holding it in place with tape - this stops her being able to bend her elbow enough to get the fingers into her mouth. Swimming armbands can also be used to get this effect.

Pythia

I had lost all my baby teeth by 9 and had the braces on by 10. I also sucked my thumb for years but had other issues like an overbite and a gap between my front teeth. In my view, the younger you can get them on, the better, as that means you can get them off earlier.

I am really thankful to my parents for fixing my teeth as soon as it was an option as I didn't have to endure bad teeth for long.

Oral Surgeon

Pythia wrote: »

I had lost all my baby teeth by 9 and had the braces on by 10. I also sucked my thumb for years but had other issues like an overbite and a gap between my front teeth. In my view, the younger you can get them on, the better, as that means you can get them off earlier.

I am really thankful to my parents for fixing my teeth as soon as it was an option as I didn't have to endure bad teeth for long.

True but the Op is talking about a 6 year old so way too soon for braces (but not an orthodontic opinion...). You need to be in the late mixed dentition (baby & adult teeth) or adult dentition for braces....

OS