Orthodontic Tips March 25, 2014

I went to lunch with a dental colleague last week. He asked me “Can you tell me when a two splint system is necessary instead of a one splint? Can you tell me when I should be doing the TMJ care and when should I refer it?”

Here are the answers.

A two splint system is necessary when there are bite marks or grinding marks on the single splint. The reason for this is as follows. If there are marks on the splint then the patient will Continue reading →

This is a CT scan of a mandibular second molar. Notice the buccal shelf of bone. That is where I place a TAD to retract the mandibular teeth “en mass”. The molar teeth slide distally past the TAD as the lower teeth move back.
This is one of the exciting things that I do with orthodontic TAD’s.
Placement of the TAD’s is done with local anesthetic infiltration to numb the mucosa and periostium. Bone doesn’t have nerve fibers so a block in not necessary. If the TAD touches the root, the patient will let me know since the tooth is anesthetized. There is very little postoperative pain. The patient will brush the TAD to keep it clean and rinse with Listerine once a day. I can load the TAD immediately to start to move the teeth.
Stan Continue reading →

img class=”alignleft size-medium wp-image-129″ src=”https://www.drstanwaese.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Adult-Ortho-needs-Perio-300×163.jpg” alt=”Adult Ortho needs Perio” width=”300″ height=”163″ />

This is an anterior view of a 51 year old female who came for a consultation last week.

Her chief complaint was protruding teeth. We can see other issues as well: crowding, deep bite, tooth brush trauma. But the most significant issue is periodontal disease. Upon probing there were only minor bleeding points in the lower anterior. However, there has been bone loss and recession. This causes tipping forward of the posterior teeth and proclination of the incisors. We call that vertical collapse of the lower face height. Continue reading →

Orthodontic Tips March 4, 2014

“God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.”

This is the Serenity Prayer.

I was talking to several dentists this week about the state of the economy. Apparently everyone is experiencing a slow down. It is easiest to think that when things don’t go the way we want them to that it is our fault. Well apparently it is not so. That’s when the Continue reading →